


Anamnesis

by AprilFools



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-17
Updated: 2016-06-17
Packaged: 2018-07-15 13:54:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 25,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7225042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AprilFools/pseuds/AprilFools
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU with a grown up Frisk that loses her memories whenever she dies or resets. Takes place after a failed genocide route.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

Here I am. Again.

I've seen these golden halls more times than I can count. I die.

Like a track on repeat, I die over and over again.

There he is again, stepping out from the shadows and into the golden light shining through the windows. An angel of death. The dust shining in the air is beautiful. I watch as they float by and my life leaves me once more. There was a reason I was doing this, long ago. Or perhaps in the perspective of the world it happened in no time at all.

He steps out once more.

“How did this happen?” I asked him. An intense hatred burned in his right eye. He killed me again.

I tried asking him once more. The same result. And again. And again.

Again.

Again….

**“You really can't remember?”** It was the first time I've heard him speak in some time. I shake my head. A complex face of hatred and pity. 

**“Enough. Lets get to it.”** I tilt my head inquisitively. He grows frustrated and repeats himself. 

I continue the endless dance. Only I've memorized his movements, knew exactly what would come up next, determination kept me going so that I could end this loop. I have heard this story more times than I can remember. The time-lines, how he stopped caring long ago, giving up on going to the surface. It was a battle of whose determination was stronger. Until finally, for the first time he offered to spare me. I was shocked.

As if in disbelief, I stared at his face for signs of a trick. Exhausted. he smiled at me and opened up his arms. I dropped the knife in my hand and stared at him with a vacant expression. He fanned his fingers as if to invite me closer. Stumbling, walked up to him. Gently he wrapped his arms around me and rubbed my back.

**“…You're sparing me? Finally. Buddy. Pal. I know how hard it must be… to make that choice. To go back on everything you've worked up to. I want you to know… I won't let it go to waste. … c'mere pal.”** With one last gentle squeeze, I didn't even feel it as several bones impaled me instantaneously. I coughed up blood. With my fading vision, his face grew more and more blurry. Once more the angel granted me deliverance. He whispers to me as my life fades away once more.

**“If we're really friends, you know what you must do Frisk.”**

There is something there vaguely. Scratching at the edge of my memories. That's right, I can reset everything. I can escape this loop. But why had I not broken out of it long before then? The questions fester in my mind. More than anything, I was tired and wanted all of this to end.

I reset everything.


	2. Mother

A golden bed of flowers. A light shone on my face, waking me from my slumber. I felt a stiff soreness as I stand. It's dark. There is another light ahead, with no other path I follow it. A flower stands out from the rest, hunched over as if it was weeping. Slowly I approach the flower and it looks up at me. Big round eyes, a childish smile. It quickly turns sour. 

“What happened? You were so close!” He called out to me. Blankly I stared at the flower. Little white pellets floated above the flower, circling playfully as they danced. 

“Destroy everything! I know you want to!” The flower yelled. Then the pellets uniformly went flying toward me. My body instinctively tried to dodge, however a monster jumped in front and stared down the flower. Intimidated, the flower left. How unusual, a retreating flower. A goat-like monster turned to face me with a motherly expression. 

“Are you alright child?” She asked. Suddenly a sharp pain in my head caused me to flinch, my hand covering my face. My knees hit the ground as I entered a cold sweat. My breath went ragged as the pain which I could only could imagine would be like if my brain exploded overtook all my senses. The monster quickly moved to my side, placing a gentle hand on my back as she worriedly cried out to me. Her voice was like a distant buzz.

The next thing I can remember is waking up in a child’s bed. It was dark, and the faint smell of butterscotch and cinnamon filled my nose. Like it was a dream, I no longer felt any pain in my head. Slowly I ran a hand down my temple and sighed. Faintly I recalled a voice, snail recipes, a mothers love, and the taste of butterscotch cinnamon pie. 

“Tor...iel.” The name floated in my head. 

Getting out of bed, I noticed and picked up a pie and poked at it timidly. I took a bite. It was the same as it was in my memories. It was good. A small smile formed on my lips as I ate the rest. Curiosity drove me to leave the confines of the room. I could hear humming down the hall. A lullaby. It filled my heart with warmth. Shyly I peeked my head beyond the frame and watched as the monster rocked in a chair. Petite reading glasses sat on her nose as she read a cookbook. 

“Come in my child.” She bade me welcome. Slowly I walked into the room and nervously watched her eyes as she read. With a motherly smile she closed her book and smiled at me. “You gave me quite a scare in the ruins earlier today. What caused you to scream out like that?”

“My head...” I paused, placing a hand on my skull. “Felt like it was being split open.” I explained, searching for an answer in her eyes. Placing the book gently on the floor, Toriel stood up and placed the back of her hand on my forehead. 

“Well you're not running a fever so I'd say you're a-head” She commented. I stared at her blankly waiting for her diagnosis. With resignation she put her hands against her hips. “It may have just been a migraine my child. At least you don't seem to be in anymore pain at the moment. Come now child, are you hungry?”

Excitedly I nodded my head. A smile returned to her face. With a grievous lack of snails, I watched as she prepared dinner for the two of us. It was fun. We made breakfast for dinner. As she ate, she excitedly told me about all the things she wanted to teach me. After we had finished eating, together we washed the dishes and I sat on the floor in front of her rocking chair as she read me a story. 

“Toriel.” I spoke up as she neared the end of the story. She looks visibly confused as I called her name.

“I don't remember sharing my name.” With a short pause she must have passed it off as just forgetting and asked for mine. “What's your name, my child?”

“My name?” I asked, that same blank expression. I closed my eyes and contemplated the question.

“Do you not remember?” Toriel asked me, looking even more concerned. 

“I don't know.” I answered, frustrated with how incompetent of an answer that was. I felt a warmth on the top of my head as she rubbed it gently with her hand.

“Don't worry child. You'll remember.” She assured me. “Now come on, brush your teeth and go to bed.” She insisted. With a pout I do as she asks. Mostly because I already have become quite exhausted.

In those days I learned many things. How to cook and clean, math, science, history, and the whole time Toriel looked so happy. We would always have a story after dinner after which I would go to bed. Occasionally Toriel would disappear. Usually when I was stuck with a worksheet. One day when I had finished early, curiosity drove me. The basement was usually locked up tight but it was left unlocked right now. I walked downstairs and walked down the long corridor. I heard a faint voice and laughter. I crouched to the ground and listened in. 

** “knock knock.” **

“Who's there?”

** “ya.” **

“Ya who?”

** “i'm excited to see you too!” **

What I heard was a barrage of terrible knock knock jokes. They went on and on, fits of laughter roaring from Toriel. In the end I couldn't help but smile just a bit myself. I stood up and brushed off my pants, turning to return to the first floor when I heard a subject change. 

****“you seem to be feeling a lot better lately.”** The voice on the other side of the door observed. **

“What do you mean?” Toriel inquired. 

I felt like I should leave. Something about that voice terrified me. Curiosity cemented my feet to the ground. 

****“i don't know, lately it seems like you've started to laugh more. maybe i've just gotten that much punnier”** The voice continued. Toriel couldn't help but burst out laughing again. **

That was when Toriel started to speak of me. Of the lessons, story time, cooking and eating together. For the first time she felt like she had a child again. I wonder who this child was, and what happened to them. There was a long silence from the other side of the door after she finished her story. 

****“has this kid acted strange at all?” The voice finally asked.****

“Strange?” Toriel asked, thrown off by the question. “Well, there was the time where she passed out from a migraine when we met, and I think she's an amnesiac as well. Doesn't even remember her name.” There was a silence again. 

**“i see, let me know if anything happens then. i better get going before my brother catches me slacking off.”** The two said there farewells and another sharp pain assaulted my head. That voice, I remember that voice. An angel of death. Lasers, the scent of blood, anger, hatred. With my hand pressed against the wall, I used it for support as I struggled to stand upright again. I stumbled back to the first floor while gripping my head. 

The peaceful days with Toriel continued. But the energy I put into my lessons was a token effort at best, and at night I was assaulted with nightmares. Where I died over and over again, the same skeleton taking my life over and over again. I remembered the church and the golden light, the shadow behind the pillar. His voice filled with malice. Toriel must have sensed how withdrawn I had become. 

“My child, has there been something bothering you?” Toriel asked me. Fresh baked butterscotch cookies laid out in front of me in order to butter me up. I felt an overwhelming warmth and love from my adoptive mother. 

“I've been having nightmares lately. In every single one, I meet a skeleton in a church. I do battle with him, and he kills me. Every single time. I remember very little about it, but I cannot think of him as my enemy or even as somebody I hate.” I explained. I left the cookies untouched. Instead my hands remained firmly clasped as my thoughts focused on my nightmares. 

“If he isn't your enemy, what is he to you?” Toriel asked, smoothing out her dress as she took her seat. I felt as though the question was for more so for me than her. Silence followed as I reflected on those memories. It felt as though there was a huge block. 

“Toriel, did you know angels and demons are two sides of the same coin? The more potential that angel has to be good, the more potential it has to become a force for evil. What if two angels were good friends, but one day one of them became a demon? But not just any demon, one so powerful that the only one with any hope of stopping it was his friend?” I asked her, rubbing my thumbs together nervously. Toriel opened her mouth to speak, but seemed to reconsider her initial answer. 

“There may not be a right answer to that question. If it were me, I'd probably run away.” Toriel explained, with a distant expression. 

“I think the skeleton in my dreams wanted to as well. But he wasn't given an option. In the end, it's easier to kill somebody you hate then your friend.” I answered, suddenly feeling very lonely. “I don't have any other memories of him beyond that. Maybe in the end he was my enemy.” Part of me wondered if I'd ever learn the truth. 

“My child, I think it's time you leave these ruins.” It took me by surprise to hear her say that. 

“Why?” I asked, distraught at the sudden announcement. 

“I've kept you in these ruins for far too long. You've barely remembered anything. I think the only way to recover your memories is to find them.” She added, gently stroking my hair. Tears started to form in her eyes. I gently took her hand and squeezed it. 

She was right though, I couldn't stay here forever. Eventually I would have to leave the ruins. This place would become no less than a prison if I never found the courage to leave. My memories would never return and I'd always wonder who I was. With a conviction, I looked Toriel in the eyes and then hugged her. It took everything she had to not break out into sobs. 


	3. Family

Toriel and I spent one last evening together doing the same routine things we fell into. I left the next morning with just a lunch box lovingly packed to the brim. As I stepped outside the ruins, my shoes crunched. It was a snowy winter wonderland. A long line of dead trees lined my path with a strangely well-tread path stretching out before me. It was eerily quiet, save for crunching of the snow beneath my feet. I felt like there was somebody watching me. I stopped at the foot of a bridge when I heard the crunching of footsteps that didn't belong to myself.

A dizzying fear overtook me, my heart raced, and once again a flash of pain assaulted my senses. It was more dull than the previous ones. It throbbed and made my senses fade out. My surroundings became blurry and I found myself on my knees even when the crunching of the footsteps stopped. My breath was ragged, that same cold sweat taking over me. Slowly I turned my head and behind me I saw that same figure I saw in my nightmares. He had a familiar smile. Not the nervous one I was used to but a mischievous grin. The skeleton looked me over. A name floated in the back of my mind. Sans.

**“is that how you greet an old friend?”** He asked, extending a bony hand. I silently stared at his bony hand, trying to read his expression. Impatiently he glanced about and urged me again. With great reluctance I grab hold of his hand. _Pbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbtttt._ Single-handedly he managed to dispel the fear in the atmosphere. Quite literally. A smile in his eye, the skeleton Sans pulled me up to my feet. I wobbled as I gained my footing. I stared long and hard at his face, memories flashing before my eyes. Not of the church. Older memories. 

In this memory, it started out very similar. At the foot of the bridge I heard the crunch of footsteps. I turned around and the strange figure offered me his hand. The same gag. He was extremely friendly in the way he talked about being a human hunter but didn't have much an interest in that sort of thing. The conversation as one-sided as it was quickly became about his brother. Before I knew it, I was dragged over to meet him. His brother attempted to catch me with terrible puzzles and traps, boasting of the fame and love he'd gain after he captured me and Sans would watch me from the sidelines. 

Then there was Grillbys and the whoopee cushion seats. The comedic way he drank a whole bottle of ketchup and spoke nothing but love for his brother. There was the hot dog stand, telescope gag, and finally the “date” if you could call it that at the hotel, where he told me of how Toriel begged him not to harm me and how all this time he had been watching me. Gently guiding and watching me. When it was all said and done, it was him who stood to judge me.

**“what? are you offended I'm not gonna try to capture you?”** He observed, watching my shocked expression. **“i guess you could say I don't have the guts.”** Sans smugly smiled, making his signature sideways glance.

**“heh. don't worry, I'm sure Papyrus will oblige. he always works himself to the bone.”** He joked, escorting me across the bridge. Once again he started talking about his human hunting fanatic brother, and reunited me with the conveniently located lamp. The solutions to the puzzles Papyrus put up came to me with ease. I could tell that Papyrus was having a great time. It was hard to read his brother however. Once I made my way past the final puzzle, Papyrus stormed off. I wondered if maybe I should have pretended to struggle a little more. On the way to Snowdin, Sans stopped me.

**“Toriel told me that you have amnesia.”** Sans went straight to the point. Despite his carefree attitude, it was hard to not take him serious when he himself decided to. **“How much do you remember exactly?”**

“Not much.” I answered, staring at the ground. I also have memories of Toriel, himself, and Papyrus. Would he think I was mad if I said that this wasn't the first time we had met?

**“How much.”** He questioned.

“I don't even remember my name.”

With a sudden force, Sans grabbed me and pinned me against a nearby pine tree. His hands grabbed both my wrists and he forcefully pressed them against the tree. His eyes bore straight into mine with his face mere inches away from mine. He was not gentle, his bony fingers dug right into my wrists, causing me to wince. 

**“Do you remember meeting me before?”** He spoke with tempered patience.

“Meeting you before? I...” I paused. “Wait, what do you mean?” His grip tightened even more.

**“On this time line, this is our first meeting. I can sort of remember the different time lines but Toriel and Papyrus remember nothing. Everyone else remembers nothing.”** A tired sigh escaped his mandible and he stared into my eyes searching for answers. **“For the most part, you'd remember more than even me. That is until you died. Every death took with it a part of your memories. If you die too many more times, I imagine it'll become impossible to recover your memories anymore.”** Sans explained. He looked torn between relief and pity.

**“What else do you remember?”** He repeated.

“I remember a church. I have nightmares every night where you kill me. Every dream is different, but the same. In the end you kill me.” I spoke as I recollected. It seems I didn't even notice the way it started to snow, I felt something cold fall on my forehead and moments later the water dripping down my face. My eyes looked up at the sky and I saw snowflakes falling slowly to the ground. I returned my gaze to Sans “Are you going to kill me again?” Despite the fact that he had me pinned to the tree, I didn't feel any hatred from him. His hold on my wrists loosened but he still didn't let me go. 

**“I probably should. A few more times and you'd probably be nothing but an empty shell.”** His hands released my wrists and his expression grew distant. He silently turned his back to me and disappeared. Now that he was gone, I suddenly felt a lot colder and shivered. Seeking warmth and shelter I made my way to Snowdin.

Tired, I went straight to the inn. The next morning the innkeeper refunded me my money for any number of excuses she could find. I felt inspired by her generosity. Feeling refreshed, I made my way through the town. It wasn't a very large town, but it felt cozy. In my aimless exploration I found myself stopping in front of the only restaurant I could find. Grillbys. Instant memories of Sans popped into my head. As terrifying as he was, he could be just as gentle. My growling stomach urged me to go inside. The smell of dog hit me right in the face as I stepped through the threshold. Dogs everywhere. There were some other odd patrons as well, mind you. A dizzy rabbit, a fish, even a bartender whom appeared to be an Ifrit. I grabbed myself a seat at the bar and watched the bartender as he cleaned out a glass. Silently he looked over at me and nodded to me urging me to order. The first thing that came to mind was to order fries.

It was a simple order, and it didn't take him long to finish. As customary, he left me a bottle of ketchup along with the fries. My mind wandered as I ate the fries. Transfixed by the bottle of ketchup, A vivid memory played in my head. I was the rooftop of a house. Sans and I found ourselves up there after pulling a prank on Papyrus. Papyrus would leave and enter the house screaming our names in an attempt to find and punish us. At first it threw me off how you couldn't see the stars, but nonetheless I found it beautiful on top of the roof. I could see the lights of Snowdin shining far off into the distance, a winter wonderland town that was a priceless treasure to me. The strong wind blew right through me. I shivered and rubbed my arms in a futile attempt to stay warm. Sans removed his jacket and placed it around my shoulders. 

**“it's a bone-chilling night isn't it?”** He asked, with the mischievous smile in his eyes. He was lazy beyond reproach, but he always took good care of the ones he cared for. **“wind goes right through me.”**

“Thank you, I wouldn't want to catch a femur.” I replied, sighing as I played along. The smile in his eye only grew.

**“i suppose we gave Papyrus enough of a ribbing for tonight. might as well face the music”**

I made spaghetti that night for all of us. Our conditions for his forgiveness was dinner and TWO bedtime stories that night. Working as a tag team, I played the female voices and Sans would play all the male ones. Our first story was Little Red Riding Hood. For Papyrus, we altered the end. Instead of the wolf being stuffed with rocks and thrown into the river, the carpenter scolded him and made the wolf apologize. In the end, he became best friends with the grandmother so that she wouldn't be alone in the woods anymore. There were much laughter as we'd play along to our parts. Papyrus even ducked his head under the covers as Sans pretended to eat me. 

Our second story was The Little Mermaid. Minus the part where the little mermaid was a siren and ate the prince. Papyrus had a hard time settling down for that story as Sans kept injecting fish puns into his lines.

**“don't you think it's just a liiittle fishy how swimmingly they seem to get along?”** Sans asked his brother, shrugging his shoulders as he wiggled his eyebrows in anticipation for his groans.

“Oh my cod Sans! Stop carping on about fish!” I protested. 

**“sorry, sorry! i can see that our story is starting to flounder.”** Sans sneaked one last pun in before Papyrus ended up kicking us out of the room. We sat down on the couch as we burst out into laughter. Playing off the last few fishy puns that we didn't get the chance to use naturally.

“I've haddock enough of this.” I said, leaning back into the couch.

**“don't be so shellfish! though to be fair i'm starting to hake these puns.”** Slyly he just had to get the last pun in. I found myself laughing under my breath as I shook my head. What has this skeleton turned me into? He was pure concentrate dad jokes. His hand gently stroked the top of my head. I paused and sheepishly stared up at Sans. 

**“it's late, you should sleep on the couch tonight. hmmm, I'm feeling like waffles in the morning.”** He rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he not so subtly suggested what he wanted me to cook in the morning. The elder brother hopped off the couch and retired to his room. He never did let any of us inside, it as an intangible mystery that I felt would be a major disappointment if it were ever to be revealed. It is Sans after all.

Sleeping over there was always dangerous with those two brothers. Well, more accurately it was dangerous to be asleep anywhere near Sans. Be it the hands dipped in water prank, drawing on the face, or straight out leaving a bone in my hand. Markers up the nose, stacking items on top of me, faces drawn on my stomach. I was always his favorite victim. But I never felt lonely as a result.

That was one of the many memories that sat locked away in my mind, blurry and unfocused. It took a great deal of focus to try and remember more clearly. But as I explored the underground, more memories resurfaced. They made me happy, but they also made me sad. Toriel didn't remember me, but Sans did. I wondered if there were any others who did. I had long finished the fries and found myself still staring at the bottle of ketchup. After leaving money for my bill, I slipped off the stool and left the restaurant.


	4. Bittersweet

The next morning, when I had left the Inn I found Sans waiting for me out front. His hands were tucked into his pocket, his back leaning against the building. When I left the building, he lazily looked over to me and then gently motioned his head as if telling me to follow him. He escorted me to Grillby's for his first breakfast. I sat on the stool next to him, only to hear the familiar sound of a whoopee cushion. Sans grinned, then motioned to Grillby ordering fries for the both of us. 

**“i heard from Papyrus what happened yesterday.”** Sans said, finally breaking the silence. **“so this time-line, you've decided to become friends again.”** He sighed, he looked so exhausted that it was like he had been carrying the entire world on his shoulders. 

“I remembered bits and pieces more. Papyrus, you, and myself; we used to be really close. I remembered playing pranks on Papyrus and I remembered that locket you gave me.” He twitched as if he had been struck by something. 

**“that was from the third time-line. i believe.”** Cautiously he looked over at me. Grillby returned with our order of fries. Without asking me, he took the bottle of ketchup and downed it all in a single gulp.

**“Look Kid, What I want you to do is recover those memories. Then I want you to tell me why.”** Sans continued.

“Why what?” I asked him once more.

**“Why you killed Papyrus. Why you killed everyone.”** His eyes went dark, he was frightening as he stared me down like he was ready to kill me again. He got up from the stool. **“cover my tab for me, will ya?”** With that, he left.

I met Papyrus later that day as I quietly walked across Snowdin in a daze. Why would I ever kill Papyrus? I didn't understand. From what my memories could tell me, I loved the two of them dearly. Not paying attention to my surroundings, I bumped straight into the younger brother. 

“AH! HUMAN! YOU WERE SO EXCITED ABOUT HANGING OUT THAT YOU RAN RIGHT INTO ME! FEAR NOT! LETS GO TO ANOTHER PLACE I SPEND A LOT OF TIME!” Once again he grabbed a hold of my wrist and escorted me back to the forest between the Ruins and Snowdin. It appeared that there was another puzzle that he wanted to work on. I had never actually made a puzzle before so I decided to help him. Creating a puzzle was a lot harder than actually solving them. I had previously underestimated Papyrus. With a new-found respect I watched him as he focused intently. 

By noon, my stomach growled. Papyrus offered to make me some of his artisan spaghetti, but I decided that I'd prefer to make something. So together we headed back to his home and I prepared some dishes that I learned from watching Toriel cook. Although Papyrus insisted that he was the greater cook, he admitted that he liked my cooking. It made me happy to hear him say that. After eating, we returned to working on that puzzle together. Well, it was more like Papyrus doing all the work and I'd assist him in whichever way I could. Then I'd test out the puzzles for him. By the time we were done, it was late. Papyrus offered to let me sleep on the couch that night.

That morning I made breakfast and made sandwiches for us to eat in the afternoon. We finished making his puzzle to his satisfaction, and declared himself a puzzle making genius. To celebrate we had our picnic with the sandwiches I had prepared. 

“I didn't know actually making the puzzles could be so much fun.” I exclaimed happily, taking a bite out of one of the spaghetti sandwiches(Which he had insisted upon). 

“OF COURSE! MY BROTHER WOULD ALSO SEE HOW GREAT IT IS IF HE'D ACTUALLY TRY AS WELL!” He complained, angrily taking a bite out of his sandwich. “HE SLEEPS AND MAKES TERRIBLE JOKES. CAN'T HE BE MORE LIKE HIS COOL BROTHER?” I can't help but smile as I watch him talk about his brother. He is the only person he can ever seem to manage to say anything half-way negative about. Shows how much he loves his brother. Or how little he saw of himself in him.

“OH! BY THE WAY, I BROUGHT MY FAVORITE BOOK! I THOUGHT YOU'D LIKE TO READ IT WITH ME.” He handed me a childrens book. Fluffy Bunny. With a gentle smile, I opened the book and started to read it aloud to him. You could practically see the stars in his eyes as I read the book aloud to him. Laying on his stomach...er ribcage he laid out like a teenage girl with his hands supporting his head. He listened with great interest as I read aloud. It was when I read out the ending that he gasped aloud.

“THE ENDING ALWAYS GETS ME!” He happily exclaimed, his cheeks bright red in his absolute delight. With a soft giggle I looked at the snow around us. An idea popped in my head.

“Would you like to make a snow bunny?”

“YES! YOUR DESIRE TO IMPRESS ME HAS WORKED HUMAN! LET US MAKE THE GREATEST SNOW BUNNY TO EVER EXIST!” With a child like wonder, he quickly started to gather the snow to make a rather...large snow bunny. I had recommended it expecting to make it life sized. An hour later, we managed to create a very large mound of snow nearly my size. From what seemed like out of nowhere, Sans made his appearance. Sometimes I wondered if he had the ability to teleport with the way he could be in multiple places at once.

**“you two must be hopping mad to be out here making a snow rabbit out here of all things”** Sans joked, back to his lazy care free self now that his brother was around.

“SANS! UGH. YOU ARE SO...HARE BRAINED! NYEH HEH HEH!” Silence.

**“sorry”.** Sans looks off sideways, almost apologetic. **“that was so bad that it bugs me.”**

“DON'T BE SAD. BE HOPPY! NYEH HEH! HEH!” Papyrus looked smug with himself until he saw that he was just playing into his brother's game and then stomped on the ground angrily. “STOP WITH THESE JOKES!” Sans simply shrugged and looked over at me then back at his brother. Grabbing a handful of snow, he slapped it right on the rabbits rear to make something resembling a tail. Together we worked on the snow rabbit. With the three of us, the snow rabbit was done in no time. Papyrus seemed happy enough for the three of us. 

“Since we used such tender loving hare, I think it came out fantastically.” I volunteered. Sans was grinning, and Papyrus found himself frustrated at more of the terrible jokes. Papyrus was about to complain when he remembered that there was somewhere he needed to be today. Before any of us had time to argue, he sped off. 

“I PROMISED TO SEE UNDYNE TODAY! I CAN'T BE LATE!”

Sans watched him disappear into the distance. Once he had disappeared, I became all to aware of the fact that I was alone with him. I decided that I would make my exit as well. I didn't get even two steps away.

I felt a bony hand on my shoulder. Sans opened his mouth as if to say something, but ended up not saying a word. We silently stared into each other eyes. His grip on my shoulder became more intense, squeezing it until it caused a sharp pain. Then he let it go and sighed. His feelings were clearly complicated.

“C-can I be honest Sans?” Barely louder than a whisper, I clasped my hands together and nervously rubbed my fingers. He nodded his head to give me the go ahead. “I'm scared to regain all of my memories. Papyrus is so pure. I know without a doubt in my mind that he never would do anything to make me want to kill him.” Shakily I looked down at my hands. I continued.

“So it must be me. There must be something within me that drove me to commit such… An act. But at the same time, these memories I do recall feel so precious that I never want to lose them either. Not a single one.” Sans watched me with silent judgment. Much like how he did over various time lines. Time and time again in that church. No, he was always watching me. He pulled something out from his pocket and held out his hand. Cupping my hands underneath, he dropped a locket into my hands.

I instantly recognized the locket. It was the same one I saw in my previous memories. I thought that it didn't exist in this time-line. Tears started to form in my eyes. Unbidden, they fell from my eyes as I mouthed a thank you and gripped the locket so tightly it felt like it was my lifeline. With trembling hands I tried to put the locket on. It was impossible to make the clasp with the way my whole body trembled. Walking behind me, I felt Sans bony fingers brush against my neck as he took hold of the clasp. With ease, he clasped the locket. 

**“I need you to remember, Frisk. If you cannot… it may be a long time until monster-kind will ever get to see the sun.”** My thumb rubbed against the locket fondly as I listened to Sans. I felt it from my very core. Determination. Determination to save the ones I love, and to remember. I believe Sans could sense it too and it was the very first time I had seen Sans smile like that in such a long time. A genuine smile. With a pat on my shoulder, the lazy skeleton waved his farewell and disappeared.


	5. Narcissus

The Librarby. It was hard to forget such a sign. There was a faint feeling that I had spent quite a bit of time inside that building. Reluctantly I reached my hand for the door, then recoiled as if it has burned my hand. I peered inside the window, standing on my tip toes so that I could look inside. I saw a few monsters looking like they were having fun making puzzles. I heard the crunching of snow as somebody approached me from behind. I turned around and I saw a child wearing a striped shirt. 

“What are you doing?” She asked, rocking on her feet back and forth as she stared at me inquisitively.

“I was just looking.” I answered.

“Why don't you go inside?” She wondered.

“I ah...” I paused, looking away from the child as I was unable to answer. She tilted her head in confusion and then smiled brightly. 

“Lets go in together! I have a hard time getting inside myself.” She offered, giggling softly. I observed her lack of arms and opened the door to let her inside. Excitedly she hopped in and walked over to the shelves. I quietly followed behind her, closing the door ever so gently so as to not disturb any other readers. Tilting her head sideways, the child bit onto the spine of a book and dropped it onto the only table in the library, er librarby. One of the monsters, whose majority of its mass consisted of a single eyeball peered over at the child. Paying her no mind she returned to talking to her two friends working on the puzzles. I came up behind the child and peered over her shoulder. With some awkward maneuvering she managed to open the book and innocently smiled at me. It was a book about legends and prophecies of the Underground. 

“This is my favorite book!” She explained, urging me to turn the pages. Obliging, I turned over the pages to look at the index. Like re-reading an old book, it felt familiar though I had forgotten most of the details. I turned to one of the stories I vaguely remember being my favorite. The child grinned excitedly. Softly I started to read aloud, and she listened the entire time patiently. When I had finished, I felt as though some time had passed. With a loud yawn, she said her farewell.

“Well! It was cool hanging out with you miss. Now that you see that the library isn't that bad you shouldn't be scared to enter anymore.” She explained, obviously proud of herself. I waved a quiet farewell and put the book away. Upon leaving the library, I saw the light of the lanterns shining brightly on the pure white snow. It was beautiful. In a search for the remainder of my memories I decided I should continue moving on. I passed a large home as I headed for the exit of the town. There was a river and a long line of pine trees.

A sudden snowstorm over took me. My visibility lessened the further along I trudged on. Standing in the eye of the storm, I saw the familiar silhouette of Papyrus. A flashback played in my head in an instant. His battle armor torn to shreds, the sight of his skull rolling from his shoulders, and his long red scarf carried away by the wind. I winced visibly as my head throbbed. This was different from the other memories. It was as if my mind fought to let those memories resurface. I had to fight it every step of the way, focusing my thoughts even as the pain tried to stop me.

“HUMAN.” (HALT, HUMAN)  
“ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT SOME COMPLEX FEELINGS.” (HEY, QUIT MOVING WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU!)  
“FEELINGS OF LIKE….” (I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE SOME THINGS TO SAY.)  
“THE JOY OF FINDING ANOTHER PASTA LOVER” (FIRST: YOU'RE A FREAKING WEIRDO!) 

His words boomed clearly, but somewhere in my mind I heard the whisper of Papyrus from another time line.

“THE ADMIRATION OF ANOTHER'S PUZZLE SOLVING SKILLS.”(NOT ONLY DO YOU NOT LIKE PUZZLES.)

Leaving the ruins has been nothing but a major source of Deja vu. 

“THE DESIRE TO HAVE A COOL, SMART PERSON THINK YOU ARE COOL.”(BUT THE WAY YOU SHAMBLE ABOUT FROM PLACE TO PLACE…)

I held my head, focusing my blurry vision on Papyrus as he spoke to me. I could swear I was seeing double. Not just the one standing before me, speaking with admiration. But the Papyrus whom was consumed by fear, the one who struggled to reach out to me despite that.

“THESE FEELINGS...THEY MUST BE WHAT YOU ARE FEELING RIGHT NOW!!!”(THE WAY YOUR HANDS ARE ALWAYS COVERED IN DUSTY POWDER.)

I killed Papyrus. But here he was standing before me.

“I CAN HARDLY IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST BE LIKE TO FEEL THAT WAY.”(IT FEELS…)

I killed Papyrus!

“AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT,”(LIKE YOUR LIFE IS GOING DOWN A DANGEROUS PATH.)

Flashes of memories played in my head. 

“I DON'T EVER WONDER WHAT HAVING LOTS OF FRIENDS IS LIKE.”(HOWEVER!)

His goofy dating outfit filled with basketball attire.

“I PITY YOU...LONELY HUMAN...”(I, PAPYRUS, SEE GREAT POTENTIAL WITHIN YOU!)

The cheesy way he would always laugh. NYEH HEH HEH

“WORRY NOT!!! YOU SHALL BE LONELY NO LONGER!”(EVERYONE CAN BE A GREAT PERSON IF THEY TRY!)

The ridiculous way he never took that armor off even as he slept or showered.

“I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL BE YOUR… ...”(AND ME, I HARDLY HAVE TO TRY AT ALL!!!)

Unbidden, tears welled up in my eyes. 

“NO… NO...” Papyrus stopped his speech as he found me on the ground crying. Thrown completely off, he stared at me with a dumbfounded expression. Then guilt. 

“NO WAIT! HUMAN! DO NOT CRY! I WILL BE YOUR FRIEND.” He called out in a desperate way to keep me from crying. “SEEING HOW HEARTBROKEN YOU ARE, I HAVE RECONSIDERED BEING YOUR FRIEND!” I hiccuped as a smile appeared faintly on my lips. Just like that, he was ready to give up his dream.

“You'll have to forgive me. The rejection hit me a little hard when it comes from the great Papyrus himself.” I joked, managing a weak smile as I stopped my tears. His cheekbones instantaneously turned a cherry red.

“WHAT!? FL-FLIRTING!? SO YOU FINALLY REVEAL YOUR ULTIMATE FEELINGS! W-WELL I'M A SKELETON WITH VERY HIGH STANDARDS!!!” He had the worlds biggest smile on his face, even going so far as to wiggle his hips in a bizarre fashion.

“I'm afraid that somebody like myself wouldn't be cut out for somebody such as yourself...” The earlier memories filled me with a great sense of guilt. Truly, I wondered if I'd regret getting my memories back.

“OH NO!!! THAT HUMILITY...IT REMINDS ME OF, MYSELF!!! YOU'RE MEETING ALL MY STANDARDS!!!” Was it that Papyrus saw the best in everything? Or was it more complicated than that. The way he only saw the greatest in himself. And in turn, seeing himself in everything, he only saw the best. Does that make sense?

“HUMAN! YOUR FEELINGS FOR ME MUST BE INDEED GREAT AS YOU HAVE STOPPED CRYING NOW THAT I AGREED TO GO ON A DATE WITH YOU!!!” His cheeks flushed red even more as he offered his hand to help me up. With one swift motion I was pulled to my feet and he released my hand as if he had been holding hot coal and shyly refused to make eye contact with me.

“FEEL FREE TO COME BY ANYTIME FOR THAT DATE!” He exclaimed before rushing off. Even as his figure disappeared into the distance I heard him mumbling to himself about what to wear and where to take me. With a gentle sigh I smiled and rubbed my eyes. I headed back into town so that I could freshen myself up at the Inn. I watched the town from the window as I combed my hair, watching as the monsters continued about their day. Feeling a whole lot better, I left the Inn and made my way through town. Standing in front of the biggest house in town, I saw Papyrus just...standing there.

Part of me wondered if he was waiting for me. Did he intend to wait there the whole time until I took him up on his offer? He didn't even notice me until I was standing directly in front of him. With his trademarked chuckle he grabbed my wrist and started to drag me along to a place he apparently spent a lot of time in. I nearly stumbled as I was pulled along and sped my feet up to match his hurried and nervous pace. His grip dug into my wrist and I found myself twisting it a little in his grip. He hardly noticed and just as suddenly as he pulled me along, I was turned around. The sudden motion caused me to fall on my butt. 

“OH NO!!! OUR DATE HASN'T EVEN STARTED AND I'VE ALREADY MANAGED TO SWEEP YOU OFF YOUR FEET! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS AM JUST TOO GREAT.”

He released my wrist and instead offered his hand, his chest puffed out as he stroked his ego once more. Gingerly I placed my hand in his and he pulled me up. Still holding my hand, he escorted me back to his home. He seemed almost proud to declare the place of our date and ran inside….without me. Only to momentarily pop right back out to announce to me.

“HUMAN! YOU DID THAT SO YOU COULD HOLD MY HAND! I WILL KEEP MY EYE ON YOU, SNEAKY HUMAN!” I shook my head in denial to his accusation.

“POOR HUMAN! YOU ARE SO SMITTEN WITH I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS THAT YOU ARE TOO SHY TO COMPLETELY REVEAL YOUR TRUE FEELINGS!” His cheeks reddened as his leap of logic played out in his head.

“YOU ARE A TRUE MASTER AT DATING! I WILL HAVE TO WORK TWICE AS HARD TO MATCH YOU HUMAN!” With his declaration, he stormed back inside. Once again, without me. To be honest, I found his overwhelming optimism and enthusiasm hard to dislike. I followed him inside. Although our date was mostly about finding out more about the life he and his brother lived, I found myself enjoying the “date”. 

One thing that stood out was the collection of figurines in his bedroom. There was one missing, wasn't there? I picked one of them up and inspected it. 

“Papyrus.”

“YES HUMAN?”

“Did you...used to have more action figures?” I asked him, putting the one in my hand down as I turned to look at him. Placing a bony hand under his chin, he struggled to think. I didn't think I had asked him a hard question, but by his expression you'd think I asked him to cure cancer. Finally he grinned excitedly.

“I DON'T KNOW!” He exclaimed with great confidence. I almost wanted to argue that he shouldn't be so confident of that answer. But perhaps he was just confident that he didn't know? I stared at the action figures for a while longer. That familiar pain suddenly blindsided me. Another recollection.

It was Christmas Eve. Sans dressed up as Santa and I was Rudolf. With great impatience, Papyrus decided to sleep on the couch that night so that when he woke up he could open presents right away. With a teddy bear tucked under his arm and a sleeping cap on, he slept peacefully. Purposely making just a little too much noise we left a few presents under the makeshift tree that we had put up. Papyrus opened one eye, watching Sansta as he grabbed a cookie and ate it. The elder brother gave him a thumbs up and Papyrus shut his eyes tightly pretending that he didn't see him. Once Sans had finished eating the cookies, he downed the milk in one gulp and mischievously looked at me.

**“you know Rudolf, i think i might have to start bringing papyrus coal every year if he doesn't start dancing like a crab in the mornings. that's what all the good children do.”** He whispered loudly to me, just loud enough that Papyrus could hear. Stifling a laugh, I raised an eyebrow and nodded my head vigorously. There was some shuffling on the couch, but the two of us paid it no mind and left the house. We made our way to the shed and took our seats inside.

**“i see that you found that pretty humerus”** Sans smugly joked, grinning with excitement as he waited for me to play off his joke. 

“Oh! I uh- um er…” I paused. “It did tickle my funny bone!” I answered back finally. Sans stared at me as if I had insulted his grand ancestors. The skeleton started to lean toward me, closer. Mere inches from my face, he raised a hand and brought it to my face. Nervously my eyes darted from his hand to his face. Thwap He flicked a finger onto my forehead. Wincing, I touch the spot he flicked and giggled once more. A smile finally returned to his face.

That morning Papyrus excitedly opened his presents after waking us up. Normally waking up Sans was an exercise in futility but for Christmas he seemed to make an exception. With a gentle brotherly expression, he watched as Papyrus opened the gifts. One of which was the missing action figure. He had taken to it immediately and took great care in setting it aside as he started to open his other gifts. There were a few that weren't for him. Two for Sans and myself. Papyrus had gift wrapped us both spaghetti. The boxes were nearly soaking in a marinara sauce. We quickly disposed of them. One would expect Papyrus to be upset but in fact he seemed delighted. 

“YOU LOVED MY GIFT SO MUCH THAT YOU WERE SO OVERCOME WITH GRATEFULNESS THAT YOU LOST YOUR APPETITE?! WOW! I'LL MAKE MORE FOR THE BOTH OF YOU TONIGHT!”

As for the other two, it was the gift that Sans and I exchanged. Sans opened his gift first. Inside were a few prank items. One was a fake packet of gum that would snap your finger if you tried to take a piece, then there was a brand new whoopee cushion, and finally a gag book with several punny jokes inside that were guaranteed to tickle his ribs. There was an affectionate smile as he looked inside the book. Finally I attempted to open the box with his gift but it seemed like it was sown shut so that I couldn't. Sans snickered under his breath after watching me struggle with it for a few minutes and pulled out a smaller box from his jacket pocket and tossed it over to me. I slowly opened the box and inside was a locket. Inside was a picture of Sans and Papyrus making faces. On the back, it was engraved. For Frisk.

Jolted back to reality, I felt an overwhelming loss. The locket! I checked my pockets, patted my shirt, pulled off my shoes. It was gone. No doubt lost over the many resets. Papyrus watched me with great confusion. 

“HUMAN! DO NOT FRET, IF YOU FORGOT TO BRING ME A GIFT, I WILL ACCEPT ONE ANOTHER DAY!” He offered, in an attempt to soothe me. Nervously I laughed and nodded my thanks. 

“LET US COMMENCE WITH THE DATE!” He offered. Enter dating mode! No matter what I ended up saying to him, he always took it as flirting. It took no time to max out the supposed dating meter. 

“Paps, you can stop.” I stopped him as he started to get the most over the top. 

“HUMAN, I AM SORRY BUT I REALLY MUST TELL YOU THIS!” The younger brother insisted.

“If you must...” I resigned myself as I failed to come up with an adequate excuse. I was dumped. Poor Papyrus had a backwards way of going about by giving me his number. 

“Papyrus...”

“YES HUMAN?”

“Do you….” The words caught in my throat. “Never mind.” 

“DO NOT WORRY HUMAN, I KNOW THAT YOU ARE LONELY. BUT I WILL ALWAYS BE YOUR FRIEND, EVEN IF I WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO SEE YOU AS A LOVER.”

“….Thanks Papyrus. That's exactly what I needed. You're the greatest.” I give him a warm smile. It was obvious that he was about to toot his own horn, but he must have been caught off guard as his cheeks turned a bright red. Shyly he looked away, then unexpectedly he closed the gap between us and wrapped his bony arms around me. My cheek pressed up against his battle armor. The smell of Bone Cologne filled my senses.

His whole body felt stiff, but his arms rigidly squeezed my entire body. Harder and harder, he squeezed me until he took the breath out of me. All I could manage was a squeak until he finally loosened up his hug. With robotic motions, he quickly ran out of the room. Even now, I could still smell the cologne. Deciding to be polite, I left the house. But considering how tired i had become, I went to bed at the Inn for the night.


	6. Confession

To Waterfall. Thinking back on the memories that I had accumulated thus far I knew where it was I had to go. I passed by Snowdin, my footsteps speeding up every step of the way. That is, until Papyrus' back met my path. He jumped when he heard the crunching of snow behind him and nervously turned around.

“HUMAN! I WAS NOT BETRAYING YOUR POSITION TO UNDYNE IF THAT IS WHAT YOU WERE THINKING.” That sounded like an obvious lie if I ever heard one. Nervously, he rubbed the back of his head and then looked over to the direction of waterfall.

“WAIT. ARE YOU LEAVING?” The taller brother then panicked.

“I SEE. IT IS BREAKING YOUR HEART TO BE NEAR THE ONE YOU LOVE KNOWING HE'LL NEVER RETURN YOUR FEELINGS.” He paused, looking absolutely distraught and even sad. Dramatically he grabbed a hold of my hand and learned over, trying to place himself closer to my height level so that he could look me directly in the eyes.

“IT WAS SELFISH OF ME TO NOT CONSIDER YOUR FEELINGS ALL THIS TIME. PLEASE STAY HUMAN AND I WILL TRY MY BEST TO BE YOUR BOYFRIEND! AND BY TRY I MEAN I WILL BE THE VERY BEST. BECAUSE I AM VERY GREAT!” It was the first time I had ever seen Papyrus look sad. To break his heart would tear mine to pieces. I slowly pulled my hands away and started to walk away. I was unable to bear it.

“HUMAN! I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL. YOU WISH TO LEARN MORE ABOUT MY FAVORITE THINGS, CREATE MORE PUZZLES, MAKE SPAGHETTI SANDWICHES, HAVE SLEEPOVERS, AND TELL BAD JOKES. BUT YOU FIND YOURSELF FALLING DEEPER FOR ME. IT ISN'T YOUR FAULT.” He continued, following me. He reached his hand out to grab me. 

“Human... Don't go.” His hand fell.

That's right, I had chosen to stay with the brothers before. Only last time, or maybe it was the first time I lived with them; it was me whom tried so desperately to stay with them. The two of them were at first skeptical. But the two of them are so good-natured that they honored my selfish request. We became a family. They broke me out of the stoic shell of a person I had been. But in the end, something inside me drove me to leave eventually. Even though I knew it'd bring unhappiness, I HAD to leave. 

“You're wrong Papyrus. We would be happy for a while.” I finally spoke. “But I must free everyone. I'll take us to the outside world Papyrus. I promise.” Turning around, I gave him one last smile before leaving. He didn't try to stop me then. Once I was sure that I was no longer within range that he could hear me, the tears returned. My hands instinctively wandered to my locket. I opened it and inside it was the same picture of those two goofy brothers. My family.

Waterfall. It was a mysterious cavern-like area and Echo Flowers were a common sight. Sans was minding a booth not too far ways in. He was sleeping. I walked up to the booth and knocked gently on the wood of the booth. Sans lazily opened his eyes and grinned.

**“so you made it to waterfall. ahead of schedule this time.”** Sans commented, stepping out from behind the booth. Walking ahead of me, he led me inside. We came across a large waterfall, rocks falling from above occasionally. He pointed at the water.

**“this is originally where you lost your locket.”** Sans explained, then looked down into the dark pit that the waterfall led toward. 

**“i found it in one of the trash piles in the junk yard. this locket is an important keepsake of mine. don't lose it again.”** He explained, thrusting his bony hands back into his pockets. Fearing for the loss of my locket, I gripped onto it tightly as I tried to get a good look at the pit below.

“I don't remember.” I weakly replied, trying my hardest to recall. No matter how hard I tried to think back, all I could do is draw a blank. Perhaps this was one of the memories that I had lost over the many resets. Sans seemed greatly disappointed. 

**“by the way, have you seen a talking flower?”** I jolted, I remember very vividly about one such flower. My reaction spoke more than words did. **“well, I'll see you later kid.”**

Once more with the disappearing act. I have to admit though, Waterfall no matter how many times I went through it; I found it beautiful. The monster kid I had met some days back even caught up with me. She spoke of Undyne. Nothing but endless praise and admiration. Underneath an umbrella, her eyes sparkled as she spoke of tales about her hero. I couldn't wait to meet her. We came across a dead end. Far too high for me to climb. Regardless she helped me up and insisted that she'd catch up later. 

That was when I met Undyne. Dark heavy armor which must have clearly weighed her down. The sound of her footsteps made me nervous. I felt the familiar twinge of pain in my head alerting me to resurfacing memories. Spears! And the recollection come not a moment too soon, she started to hurl them at me. I ran. She chased me relentlessly until I found myself at a dead end once more. I slowly turned around to face Undyne. With her prey cornered, she moved slowly but with purpose. Then several spears popped out and broke off the deck I was on into the dark abyss. I fainted.

Undyne. That's right, I had met her before. It had been so many resets ago, I couldn't remember which one it was exactly. But she was the reason I lost my locket. A spear that had nearly missed its mark hit my locket and broke the lanyard. The world seemed to slow down as I watched the locket fall into the water. Up until that point, I was always careful to not kill anybody. If I could help it, I didn't even harm them. Undyne changed that. It was the first time I killed somebody. Sans knew it was me. When I stood before him to be judged once more, I felt the guilt like a bad wound. Papyrus, bless his innocent heart thought that she went on vacation. I reset the world, hoping to erase that guilt.

But when I awoke back in the ruins, my locket was still gone. I couldn't look Sans or Papyrus in the eyes. When I did see Undyne again, I felt hatred. I wanted to kill her again. I distanced myself away from everybody. I became lonely. Papyrus and Sans tried to reach out to me, probably because in some way they still remembered the time that we had shared together. The words that the flower spoke to me became more attractive. I started to kill more. None of the boss monsters at first. Just those minor ones that I didn't even know the name of because I had grown annoyed. Sans started to tell me to “Go to hell”. I lashed out even more.

Before I knew it, I was killing everybody. But not Papyrus. Sans grew to hate me more. At some point, I broke. I started to hunt down all the monsters in the underground. I hated Sans for turning against me. So I turned against him and killed Papyrus. Then I tried to kill Sans. But no matter how many times I tried, I would die over and over again. I got better, faster, I got closer and closer to killing him and forgetting who and what was driving me in the first place little by little. In the end, it was all my fault. 

I awoke in a flower patch, staring up at the ceiling of the cave as the memories returned to me. My head throbbed like it had been knocked up against multiple rocks. It was all I could do to just keep breathing. The pain became a dull throbbing pain, then finally faded away. I continued to lay there as I wept. 

“I'm so sorry Sans. I'm so sorry Papyrus. I'm so...so sorry.” I broke out into sobbing as the guilt consumed me.

It was peaceful in the garbage dump. I'll give it that. The sound of running water was soothing. Gathering what wits I had left, I stood back up and continued my journey. The crossroads. If I remembered correctly, Napstablook and Undyne lived here. Part of me wondered if it'd be possible for me to make friends with Undyne again. I wanted to at least try my best. Next was the Echo Flowers. Such a mysterious room and atmosphere. What I found strange, was Sans presence with a telescope. He grinned as he offered to let me use the telescope.

There were a million things racing in my mind, things that I wanted to ask him but I obliged and tried to look through. All I saw was plain darkness. Sans started to snicker when he saw the circle around my eye. Of all the times I'd like for him to be serious, he chose now to return to his old self. Part of me was relieved, to be honest. 

“I remembered why.” I stated plainly. Sans expression instantly became serious. He led me deeper inside Waterfall until we were surrounded by the echo flowers. He took a seat by the waterside and offered me a seat. I sat next to him and my hand once more went straight for the locket which I clung to for comfort.

I explained it all to him, how I had lost my locket and killed Undyne in retaliation. How I started to kill more monsters as his hatred of me grew. Until it grew into a monster I could no longer control. By the time I had finished, my voice had grown shaky. My throat contracted, and my words became choked. Sans shifted from his seat and wrapped his arms around me. I turned to face him and buried my face into his shoulder. 

“I'm so sorry Sans! No matter how many times I'd reach the end… you two would be gone. I couldn't bear it. Even if it meant resetting the world until I forget who I was completely. Even if it meant you'd hate me. I didn't want to be alone anymore.” I choked out a sob, only to have Sans quietly squeeze me and rub my back as I'd sniffle. “In my search for that ending with you two, I lost myself. When I gave up I just… lost control.”

**“when we leave the underground, lets have the three of us find a life there all on our own.”** He offered, whispering softly into my ear. **“we can tell bad jokes together until we get old and read fluffy bunny until the pages fall out. no more resets.”** I sobbed on his shoulder a little while longer. My arms wrapped themselves tightly around the skeleton and squeezed him as tightly as possible.

“I love you Sans! I love you and Papyrus so much...” I exclaimed, it was the first time across all time lines that I had spoke those words. It felt good to say them. Holding me gently by the shoulders, Sans gently had me sit straight up until I could look into his eyes. His bony fingers curled around my cheek.

**“I love you too, Frisk. Papyrus and I both do.”** I found myself leaning into his bony hand and smiled gently to myself. Like a huge weight had been taken off my heart. More like, it felt as though it was floating. Out of his element, Sans awkwardly smiled. With a sudden motion, I was brought back into a hug. “I am the one who should apologize kid. I am the only one who could possibly understand what you went through. At some point I simply didn't see you as anything but an anomaly.” I sniffled in response. 

**“I have some things I need to take care of. But I'll be keeping an eye on you kid.”** Sans explained as he pulled away from me. With his hands thrust back in his pocket, his back faced me. **“Also, I won't make the same mistake again. You're not alone any longer.”** There was a long drawn sigh. Looking up toward the ceiling, it deceptively almost looked like he was watching the stars themselves. Something I had always taken for granted before, and something he had grown to accept that he'll never see.

**“Even if you become another murderer, I'll save you Frisk. For your sake, for mine, for everyone.”** With those words, he departed. In his absence, I heard the whispers of peoples wishes. Wishes to see the world above, to see the true night sky. I must press on ahead. To finally reach the happy ending everyone has been waiting for.


	7. Showbiz

With my memories steadily returning to me, finding my way through Waterfall was almost an instinct at this point. Those memories also spoke to me, telling me exactly when I'd have to fight Undyne again. Sometimes the location would change, but most of the time it would take place on that bridge. I nervously inhaled then exhaled and begun to cross the bridge. The monster child from earlier started to approach me.

“Yo, it's uh… me again.” She sheepishly cast her eyes downward. “You wouldn't… gosh I've never had to ask this before. A-are you a human?” I replied with a simple nod. She was clearly disappointed with my answer.

“O-oh. Of course you are. Undyne told me to stay away from you. I guess that makes us enemies huh?” She asked rhetorically. An awkward silence between us. “I stink at this, can you say something mean so that I can hate you? Please?” Frustrated, the child bit her lip. She was struggling to glare at me, but those eyes were nothing like the eyes Sans had after I killed his brother. There monsters in the underground, was it possible to get them to hate you with words alone? I wondered.

“You're annoying. Run off and play elsewhere.” I struggled to act smugly, but I was a failure.

“You're really bad at this aren't you?” She asked, sighing with defeat. “Yo, I uh… I hate your guts.” That was a lie. Even when I murdered everyone around her she wanted to be my friend. Even when I tried to kill her, she wanted to believe in me. “I'm such a turd. I'm going to go home now.” Taking a step back, she turned around and started to cross the bridge. Like clockwork, she slipped. Clinging to the bridge, she called out for help. Predictably, Undyne showed her face. In the end, it didn't matter if I saved her or not. Undyne would help her if I didn't. The kid would defend me no matter what I did. 

But if there was something that these many time lines have taught me, it's not the results that matter in the end. If you ever let your heart falter from doing the right thing, it becomes a slippery slope and it becomes harder and harder to find your way back. Without hesitation I raced over to the child and pulled her up. Undyne stood and watched as I pulled her up. With the mask I never would figure out if it was surprise or hope that stopped her from ever trying to apprehend me while I was preoccupied. With the child back on her feet, she stood between Undyne and me and defended me. Every time, Undyne would back away. Once more the child thanked me and went on her way.

If I were to be completely honest, the first couple time lines I actually thought Undyne was REALLY cool. Not the imposing knight with black armor. The heroine with the long flowing red hair, the way she wielded a spear, the way she proudly spoke of defending the people within the kingdom. When I saw Undyne sitting on top of that mountain, I felt nostalgic. Like it was something I had not seen in a hundred years. Part of me also wondered if she acted this way because Alphys was watching as well.

No, that was who she was. When I left nothing but dust left in my path, even after I had struck her down in just a single strike it was pure determination that put her back together stronger than ever before. Undyne was a heroine, and to make to the end I needed to get past her one more time. On the first time line, I spent a long time trying to dodge her attacks. Wondering if she'd eventually tire out. Eventually I realized that wasn't really the case. This time I knew. I jolted at the first chance I got. Dashing and weaving around her, she chased after me with her spear held high. She was faster than I. After the first time escaping her, she was always more alert. I had to bait an opening from her.

Even though it would be difficult to kill her, I made sure never to lay a hand on her. Taking advantage of her openings, I would make a run for it all the way into the Hotlands. Sans could be found taking a nap in a nearby booth. Didn't he have something to take care of? What a mysterious guy. Scratch that, he's just lazy. I wasn't the only one who noticed him. Undyne couldn't resist to check up on the skeleton. There was obvious anger. If she wasn't so preoccupied with catching me I had no doubt she'd be trying to wake him up. Violently. Poor Undyne however, had a hard time in the Hotlands. Especially with that heavy armor. The heat overtaking her caused her to slow her steps. Her breath became more broken and ragged. Until eventually she collapsed. Conveniently, a water cooler was nearby. Once the heatstroke had overcome her, I generously poured the cup of water on her face. 

Brought back to life, she jolted upright. Our eyes met, and silently she looked around us. She silently walked away. I always wanted to ask her, did she walk away because she was afraid of another heatstroke, or was it that she perhaps gave up trying to kill me? Making my way deeper into the Hotlands, I approached Alphys' lab. The doors opened as I approached them and the nice air conditioned lab was like a little piece of heaven inside this dormant volcano. Sitting at the monitor, Alphys snorted as she awoke from what I imagined was a nap. Her lab coat was crinkled and she had drool dribbling down her chin. Her sleepy eyes confirmed my story.

“The human!” Alphys exclaimed. The lizard woman leapt out of her seat and fell back on to her rear. With a soft squeak, she stared at me in a gaze of panic and idolization. I slowly walked over to the lizard and offered my hand. Nervously her hand shook as she reached out for me. With a panic she rubbed her palm across her lab coat and finally grabbed my hand. With a graceful motion, I helped her back onto her feet.

“Hello. I've heard that you've been watching over me, I wanted to thank you.” I smiled at her. Almost instantaneously her face erupted into a bright cherry red and the palms of her hands held her cheeks as she shook her head violently trying to contain the fangasms. I tilted my head in curiosity. 

“O-Oh! Yeah! Haha! You've been doing a terrific job!” She exclaimed nervously, giving me a big thumbs up and nervously darted her eyes about. Thrown off her script, Alphys wasn't sure what to do until Mettaton was scheduled to arrive. Was it mean that I enjoyed watching her squirm just a little? 

“By the way, I feel so unprepared! Haha~ I haven't even washed this lab coat hah. Ha!” Desperately she started to cough. “B-by the way, I have to admit something. I may have...created a human killing robot! I tried to disable the function but it...made him go haywire. H-he should be here any minute now so y-you should probably get...” 

Before she could finish her sentence a large rectangular robot crashed through the wall. Mettaton in all his glory, announced his presence of confetti and grand gestures. 

“OHHH YES! WELCOME, BEAUTIES... ... TO TODAY'S QUIZ SHOW!!! OH BOY! I CAN ALREADY TELL IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT SHOW! EVERYONE GIVE A BIG HAND FOR OUR WONDERFUL CONTESTANT! NEVER PLAYED BEFORE, GORGEOUS? NO PROBLEM! IT'S SIMPLE! THERE'S ONLY ONE RULE. ANSWER CORRECTLY... OR YOU DIE!!!” Excitedly he started to press his microphone against my lips.

“COME ON NOW! INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO OUR WONDERFUL AUDIENCE!!!” Before I could even answer he pulled it away.

“A SHY ONE ISN'T SHE? IT'S TIME TO QUIZ OR DIE!”

Thrust right into the heart of the matter, Mettaton started to ask me a bizarre set of questions. Behind him stood Alphys, nervously motioning the answers to the quiz show. With her aid, I managed to get by unscathed. By the time the final answer rolled out, I found myself pausing. Who did Alphy have a crush on? Alphys was beet red, no longer offering any assistance. But the answer to that was pretty obvious. Just about everyone.

“Undyne.” I answered.

As Mettaton spoke of the way Alphys had it going for Undyne big time, I watched the lizard squirm uncomfortably. I was granted a temporary mercy and Mettaton sped off. Scratching behind her head awkwardly, Alphys managed to give me a nervous smile. She upgraded my phone, offered her assistance if I got stuck, and sent me on my way. 

The puzzles themselves weren't very difficult but I still thanked Alphys as he struggled to speak to me over the phone. Eventually I wandered on what seemed to be a cooking show set. Mettaton, unable to ever make his entrance mundanely had the lights switched off, then on once more with the spotlight shining directly upon him announcing his show. I played along as best as I could. 

“Alphys, I have a question.” I preemptively made the effort to call her first while I was working on shutting off some lasers. Caught off guard, all I heard from the other line was a series of uh, um, oh, er, and silence. “I was playing Kissy Kissy Mew Mew and I got stuck on the Okazaki route. I keep getting the bad ending, I was wondering if you had any tips?”

“OH! OH! I CAN SEE HOW YOU GOT STUCK! SEE, YOU HAVE TO ACTUALLY AGREE TO GO ON A DATE WITH YOSUKE FIRST EVEN IF YOU ARE GOING FOR OKAZAKI, BUT WHILE YOU ARE DATING YOSUKE YOU RAISE YOUR PARAMETERS FOR OKAZAKI AND IGNORE YOSUKE And… … ...” Alphys suddenly hung up the phone. Not even a minute later, I got a notification on my phone.

“Oh em gee! I can't believe the human asked me for advice about Kissy Kissy Mew Mew! >3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  Okazaki, Yosuke, and Okarin are simply the first Japanese names I could think of.  
> Okazaki is the protagonist from CLANNAD.  
> Okarin is a nickname from one of the romancable girls from Steins;Gate for Okabe.  
> Yosuke is one of the major characters from Persona 4.
> 
> I've never seen Tokyo Mew Mew so I just made crap up. Fight me!


	8. Si Vis Amari, Ama

I awoke in a strange place. I could hear the bubbling of magma, I felt an intense heat, and as far as I could tell, I was underground. There was a faint voice. I stared up into the darkness of the ceiling. I felt tired, and I felt like I wanted to be here forever. The voice became stronger. 

**“Kid!”** Something told me that I've heard that voice before. **“C'mon Kid! Wake up!”** I turned my head to the source of the sound and found a skeleton hunched over me. He shook my shoulder roughly. When he noticed that I had moved, he paused and watched me. 

“Who are you?” I asked. He seemed incredibly surprised to hear me say that. Then sad. His arms cradled me and he lifted me up into his arms. “Where are you taking me?” I asked. He refused to look me in the eye. My consciousness must have drifted, or maybe I teleported? One moment I was inside a dormant volcano the next I was inside a house. He walked over the only couch and gently laid me down there. He silently walked into the one room with glowing lights coming out of it. The lights went off and I was left alone.

I felt a dizzy spell as I sat up straight in the couch. The room looked familiar, somehow. I heard approaching footsteps, and the sound of a doorknob being turned. A skeleton taller than the previous one stepped through. He looked excited to see me and rushed straight over to greet me. Pulling me into an embrace.

“HUMAN! I KNEW THAT YOUR HEART COULD NOT STAND TO BE APART FROM ME FOREVER! I KNOW HOW MUCH IT MUST HAVE HURT. DO NOT WORRY HUMAN! YOU ARE ALWAYS WELCOME HERE!” He cheered, dropping me back on the couch not-so-gently. I stared at the tall skeleton.

“Who are you?”

“IT IS I! THE GREAT PAPYRUS! ARE YOU THAT STAR STRUCK TO SEE ME AGAIN?!” His cheekbones flushed a bright red. “I AM HAPPY TO SEE YOU TOO FRIEND.”

“Papyrus.” I repeated the name. 

“NYEH HEH HEH! CORRECT!” The taller skeleton blushed again. “I KNOW! I WILL MAKE YOU SOME OF MY SELF PROCLAIMED 5-STAR ARTISAN SPAGHETTI AS A CELEBRATION!” In his excitement, he rushed off to what I imagined was the kitchen. My legs felt like seaweed as I stood. I made two steps before I collapsed. A ringing played in my head. It refused to go away. Papyrus found me on the floor when he came to check on me as the water was boiling. 

“HUMAN, ARE YOU ILL?” He asked me, rushing over to my side. “YOU MUST BE HUNGRY! I'LL BE SURE TO HURRY IT UP! I'LL PUT THE HEAT TO MAXIMUM!” He declared, rushing off to finish his cooking.

There was no real table to speak of, so we ate on the couch. I silently ate the food. The ringing in my head still hadn't gone away. I wasn't sure what to make of anything. 

“YOU MUST LOVE MY COOKING SO MUCH! YOU HAVEN'T SAID A WORD JUST SO THAT YOU COULD SAVOR THE FLAVOR. I AM HUMBLED!” The taller skeleton beamed, practically shoving the food down his...skull? He had no throat to speak of really. When I finished eating, Papyrus started to talk to me more.

“SANS SAID THAT YOU HAD SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO DO. DID YOU FINISH YOUR TASK AS FAST AS YOU COULD?”

“...”

“YOU KNOW, SANS SEEMS A LOT MORE UPBEAT LATELY SINCE YOU'VE BEEN AROUND. HE USED TO BE REALLY DISTANT BUT HES STARTED TO INVOLVE HIMSELF.”

“...”

“HE SAID THAT YOU WANTED TO TRAVEL THE WORLD WITH US WHEN WE ESCAPED THE UNDERGROUND.”

“...”

“HUMAN, ARE YOU OK?” He put a hand on my shoulder, watching me with concern. Sans came out of the room. He silently walked over to us and then spoke to Papyrus.

“Papyrus, leave her be for today.”

“BUT SANS, SHES BEEN QUIET THIS WHOLE TIME.”

“She's had a rough day.”

“THEN I SHALL CHEER HER UP BROTHER!!! I AM A GREAT AT CHEERING UP MY FRIENDS.”

**“PAPYRUS.”** Sans raised his voice. From the way Papyrus was looking at him, I could have sworn he had seen a ghost. Without another word, the two of them left to their respective rooms. 

I spent the next few days with Papyrus. He continued to act as though he had known me from before. Taking me along for patrols, showing me puzzles, and told me his dreams of joining the royal guard. I didn't see Sans much at all. One evening, Papyrus had me read his favorite book since his brother hadn't been showing up to do so.

“Fluffy Bunny had fifteen sisters and fifteen brothers. Fluffy Bunny was very happy. One day, the fluffy bunny traveled to the city. Fluffy Bunny fell in love. Fluffy Bunny, Fluffy Bunny…” I didn't even make it halfway through the book before Papyrus had fallen asleep. I laid the book down on the nearest table and walked back out to the couch and turned on the TV. Mettaton was on the screen playing a comedy routine. 

Sans came home late that night. He passed by me without saying a word. I watched him as he started up the stairs. Then he turned his head to look at me. It was just for a moment, then he retreated to the same dark room. The ringing in my head made it very difficult to sleep. Eventually exhaustion won over and I found peaceful sleep. For the first time since I can remember, I had a dream. Nightmares where Sans meets me in a church and kills me over and over. I roll in my sleep and end up falling off the couch, waking me almost mercifully. The noise must have woken Papyrus as he came racing out of his room.

“HUMAN! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?” He knelt beside me and looked me over to see if I was injured. I shook my head.

“Nightmare.” I replied.

“AH! I HAVE NIGHTMARES TOO SOMETIMES. ONCE I HAD A NIGHTMARE I WAS ON STAGE WITH METTATON… BUT I WAS NOT WEARING ANY PANTS!!! HOW EMBARRASING!!!” He started to shake his head violently as his cheeks flushed a bright red.

“I had a nightmare, where Sans killed me. Over and over. He hated me.” My voice came out barely more audible than a whisper. I saw some movement out of the corner of my eye. When I turned my head to see what it was, it was already gone.

“SANS WOULD NEVER DO THAT! YOU ARE HIS SECOND FAVORITE PERSON! BUT FEAR NOT, BEING SECOND TO ME SHOULD FILL YOU WITH PRIDE!” He assured me. 

“I don't remember anything about you or Sans. What was I to you two?” I wondered.

“HUMAN, THIS JOKE IS GETTING OLD. NYEH HEH! YOU CAN STOP IT NOW!” He started to visibly sweat.

“I have a locket with a picture of the two of you. But even when I remember something, it slips right out of my fingers.” I stare at my hands. 

“NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH! YOU ARE A GREAT ACTOR HUMAN!!!” He started to laugh nervously, patting my back roughly as he did so. I just watched him in silence.

“HUMAN… YOU REALLY DO NOT REMEMBER?” I nodded my head in response. He stared at me, unable to process anything about what happened. He then grabbed my shoulders and started to shake me violently.

“MAYBE WE JUST NEED TO JOLT YOUR MEMORY! IF ANYBODY KNOWS WHAT TO DO, I BET IT WOULD BE UNDYNE!” He spoke with a sudden inspiration. He rushed out of the house.

Leaving me alone once again. I found myself looking at the locket. I don't recall ever seeing Sans smile. I wonder if he truly did hate me after all. 

A spear went flying through the house, narrowly missing me and embedded itself into the ground mere inches away from me. I jumped from the shock and turned my attention to where the spear came flying from. There was a hole in the wall and a fish woman was standing outside it looking angry. Papyrus was holding her back. The woman slammed the door open and brandished another spear. Aiming it directly at me. Papyrus chased after her, crashing into her as he attempted to stop her.

“LET ME GO PAPYRUS! I MUST CAPTURE THIS HUMAN!” She screamed, pulling the younger brother off of her. She took great care to not harm him. Undyne was really strong however and won out. Breaking free she held up her spear again and held it above her head. Taking a deep breath she swung her spear down aiming for my heart. Before my eyes could register what happened, Undyne was sent flying against the wall. Sans stood in front of me, his back toward me as he faced Undyne. Two skulls floated above him, their eyes trained on the female warrior.

“Sans.” Undyne's voice dripped with malice. “Not only have you always slacked on your duties, but you are protecting the human? Don't you realize that she is standing in the way between everyone's happiness? Is her life worth your brothers happiness?” 

**“I've spent too long just sitting around. I can no longer afford to simply watch any longer. I won't allow anybody to harm the human any longer.”** Sans called out to her, raising his left hand as he anticipated her to engage him in combat. Papyrus dumbfounded stood between them. Undyne ripped herself away from the wall she was embedded in and took up a battle stance. The two of them stared each other down waiting for the other to make the first move. 

“UNDYNE! IF YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN NOT BECOME FRIENDS WITH THE HUMAN, I AM HERE TO HELP!” Papyrus urged her, trying to quell the battle before it starts.

“WHAT?” She angrily looked at me then Papyrus. “I could make her my best friend in a day!” She challenged, gripping her spear more tightly.

“WOW REALLY?! SO IF I TRY TO KILL SOMEBODY I CAN BEFORE THEIR BEST FRIEND IN A DAY?! NO FAIR, LET ME TRY TO KILL THE HUMAN!” He cheered, preparing a bone attack of his own. 

“Of course! By showing your powerful spirit you can come to have a greater understanding of each other in battle than you ever would doing dumb stuff like gossip or shopping for clothes!” Undyne explained to the innocent Papyrus. 

“But I saw the human first! Get out of here! When you get back we're going to be talking about our crushes and painting each others nails!” She pointed at the door.

“BUT THIS IS MY H--”

“OUT!” Undyne didn't even give Papyrus a chance to protest before kicking him out of his own home. Sans didn't move, still blocking my body from hers with his own. “Don't worry, I'm not going to kill your girlfriend.” She gave him a mocking smile, closing it with a snicker.

**“Good. If you do, I'll have to return the favor.”** He smiled back her in a rather frightening fashion before he took his leave. Undyne groaned once he left.

“That guy is such a freak. Did he think he looked cool right now? 'I've spent too long just sitting around. I can no longer afford to simply watch any longer.'” She mocked, “Sheesh, talk about cheesy and cliché'.” I watched her with a vacant expression. 

“Sans is my boyfriend?” I asked her. Undyne raised an eyebrow. 

“If you had any sense, he wouldn't be.” She commented dryly. That confused me even further.

“Oh right! I'm supposed to be making you my best friend! Now friend, would you like anything to drink?” She asked me nervously. I started to get up but she threw another spear at me. It narrowly miss me, sitting right next to the previous spear she had thrown at me previously.

“D-Don't get up! I'll get it for you. What would you like?” She insisted, a sweat bead dripping down her forehead.

“Tea...” I sheepishly replied.

Undyne went into the kitchen. I could hear noises coming from within as she struggled to make sense of where everything was. “WHY IS THERE SPAGHETTI EVERYWHERE?” She screamed as a pasta dish came flying out of the kitchen. It hit the door and pasta slid down the door. I slowly got off the floor and sat down on the couch, careful to make as little noise as possible. I heard the roaring of a fire moments later. Undyne came back out moments later and sat on the other end of the couch while waiting for the water to boil.

“So...” Undyne eyed me cautiously. “Do you watch anime?”

“Anime? What's that?” I asked her. Undyne looked as if I had offended her.

“Sit there! I'm going to get some DVD's from Alphys!” She exclaimed. Undyne dashed right out the door. What about the tea…? While she was out I decided to check on the water. I turned down the heat so that the steam wouldn't cause anymore noise and sat back down on the couch. Undyne returned a few minutes later holding a box. Rauntani Senshin. She popped the first DVD in and got the tea for us. 

It was an animated cartoon about a former assassin whom vowed to protect the people of Japan and to never take another life. We drank the tea as we watched the first couple of episodes. She insisted that it got better the further in it got. Pausing the DVD at the end of the third episode she asked me what I thought. There was only one right answer that meant keeping my life intact.

“It was really good.” I replied. Undyne looked at me skeptically.

“If we're to become best friends, you have to be honest. You really liked it?” She pressed me. I nodded in reply. She seemed happy with that response.

“Good! You get to live. So, why do you live with those two boneheads?” Undyne asked me, leaning forward as she started to feel a bit more comfortable around me.

“Sans found me. I don't remember them, but Papyrus and Sans apparently knew me before I lost my memories.” I explained.

“Wait, you lost your memories?” She asked. After she spoke she made a blank expression. “Oh yeah, Papyrus was telling me something like that before I came here to kill you.” I couldn't help but wince at the way she so casually spoke of killing me. The warrior woman laid back in the couch and stared up at the ceiling as she lost herself in a deep train of thought. 

“Maybe if I punch you in the head hard enough, the impact will jolt your memories. That's how it works in some of the anime.” She volunteered. With a grin she rotated her shoulder and prepared a fist. I held my hands in front of my face to block any incoming punches. Undyne sighed.

“Hmmmm…….. often times the amnesiac hero will remember if something significant reminds them. Maybe Alphys would know more.” She nodded her head in agreement with herself. She took out her phone and called her up. As they talked, she would nod her head and glance over in my direction. A few minutes later she hung up her phone and carefully slid it back into her pocket.

“Alphys says that the things that usually make the amnesiac hero recover their memories is when they find an important item, place, or important person. They can recover it by being tapped lightly on the head.” She leaned over and nudged my head with her index and pointer finger. “If they get kissed by their crush, see their loved one die, or they are losing in a battle against the villain that threatens to destroy everything the protagonist loves.”

“Most of those things seem implausible for me...” I argued, rubbing my arm nervously. “But, I do have one item that I think counts as important.” Undyne leaned closer to me.

“Give it here.” Extending her hand, I reached behind my back and slowly undid the clasp of my locket and handed it to her. With a delicacy that I didn't know she possessed, she opened the locket and then stared at me with a vacant expression.

“These two idiots? I was expecting something a little more cool. You're easily the lamest human I know.” She sighed and closed the locket before handing it back to me. I gingerly put it back on.

“Hmm, maybe those two idiots would know something actually. And if I help you get your memory back I will become your best friend!” Undyne exclaimed, grabbing her phone again to call Papyrus. Papyrus didn't get a chance to close the door before she started to press him.

“Papyrus! You're going to help me recover my best friends memories!” She volunteered him, a big tooth grin on her face. 

“I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL NOT FAIL YOU!” He declared. Cue the brainstorm, Undyne started by asking Papyrus about the memories we shared. Undyne dragged us out to the place we met first of all. The crossroads where he apparently mistook a rock for a human. Then the place where we built a giant snow rabbit. Finally, where our date occurred. That being his bedroom. Each time, I would shake my head as nothing would return.

“Hmm...” Undyne grasped her chin as she contemplated what to try next. “HUMAN!” She exploded, grabbing a hold of my shoulders. “I'VE SEEN THE WAY YOU'VE IDLY STOOD BY AS WE TRIED TO RETURN YOUR MEMORIES TO YOU. YOU MUST LACK THE PASSION TO REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE. YOU NEED TO LET IT BURN WITHIN YOU!” Her fingers dug into my shoulders as she urged me. “Look inside you! Somewhere, deep deep down, the person you are is struggling to manifest itself. Remember! REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE!” Her eyes stared hard into mine, trying to pour all the passion in her heart directly into mine.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I focused. Remember who I am. I searched for my memories. The ringing from earlier arrived once more. Every time I managed to grasp onto a memory, the ringing would just get louder and louder. The memories slip out of my hand like water. I am unable to grasp a single one. In frustration, I exhale loudly and shake my head.

“Welp, I tried.” Undyne announced and then pointed to Papyrus. “Kiss her.”

“WHAT?”  
“WHAT?”

We both exclaimed in unison. Papyrus shook his head violently and I started to panic at the thought of her trying to force him on me. Undyne grabbed a hold of the skeletons imaginary ear and pulled him closer to me. 

“You two dated right? Which means she had a crush on you for some freak reason. Maybe that will jolt her memories.” She reasoned. Papyrus nervously looked at me and his mouth trembled. Undyne watched us impatiently. Slowly he leaned closer and I shut my eyes shut. 

“WAIT.” Papyrus stopped. “I HAVE NO LIPS. I CAN NOT KISS EVEN IF I WANTED TO.” He explained. Undyne kicked the skeleton, sending him flying toward the wall.

“Useless!” She exhaled aloud and ended up rubbing her temples in her frustration. I found myself sighing with relief. “Lets stop for tonight. We'll try again tomorrow. Don't worry, we'll regain those memories for you.” Undyne assured me, patting me gently on the back. I said my farewells and Undyne left for the night. The house was well… a mess. While I cleaned the spaghetti mess at the door, Papyrus went about patching up the walls.

If by patching a wall mean just nailing some boards in where the holes were located. It was an extremely lazy patch job but Papyrus insisted that it was LIKE NEW. Exhausted, the two of us took a seat on the couch. The two of us looked at each other, as if to ask each other, “What now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rauntani Senshin is Rurouni Kenshin if it isn't obvious.


	9. Regrets

Following his recommendation, Papyrus had me make popcorn as he pulled out some of his favorite movies starring his favorite rectangle. Huddled together beneath a single blanket, sharing the same bowl we started our Mettaton Madness Marathon. Halfway through our first cinematic feature, Sans came walking through the front door. With a lazy shrug he sat himself on the floor in front of us and stole the popcorn. Before Papyrus could attempt to steal it back, Sans lifted the bowl and inhaled the rest before handing him the empty bowl. But before he could get angry at his brother he quickly grabbed a hold of me and put both hands on either side of my head so that I had no choice but to watch the screen.

“THIS IS THE BEST PART! I CRY EVERY TIME!” Papyrus declared, prematurely starting to tear up. On screen Mettaton started to lament how his beauty was a curse, and that he felt so ostracized from everyone else. I couldn't help but smirk but Papyrus just started to sob. Sans fell asleep somewhere in the middle. As the credits roll, I glanced over to the taller brother.

“WHICH MOVIE IS YOUR FAVORITE? WE CAN WATCH THAT ONE NEXT.” He offered, I jolted from the sudden question.

“I don't know.” I answered honestly. He looked disappointed at first. But you could practically see the light bulb above his head as he was struck with inspiration.

“TELL ME A BED TIME STORY, THE KIND THAT YOU LIKE!” It was like I offered to read Fluffy Bunny to him again, the way he excitedly stole and curled up in the blanket. Without any memories, I had no idea what kind of stories I actually liked. But I honored his request and started to tell a story. Improvising on the spot, it was full of plot holes and some parts simply didn't make sense but he still listened as if I was reading him Fluffy Bunny all over again, the stars shining in his eyes. He fell asleep contentedly. Sans, whom I thought was asleep the whole time opened one eye. 

**“thanks for reading my bro a bed time story. as much as he loves Fluffy Bunny, i think you're a natural at this.”** He whispered his observation. Sans lazily stood up and stretched out his back until it cracked.

“Nonsense, I just made something up.” I humbly replied, though I was still clearly blushing from the praise. 

**“heh well, if it gets me out of reading bed time stories maybe you should become a children's book author.”** Volunteering me for story time duty, he winked at me. 

“Papyrus misses you, you know? He's complained a lot about how you've barely been around as of late.” I wondered if I was stepping some boundaries saying that. I found myself quickly regret saying that. Sans looked distant, solidifying my regret.

**“have you regained any of your memories?”** He asked me out of the blue. 

“N-no.” I answered, ignoring the strange nightmare I had this morning. I think he instantly recognized my lie. 

**“This will be the final time you'll be able to, if you can at all at this point. I'm sure of it.”** He spoke more to himself more so than me. 

“Do you know how I lost my memories?” I asked him. The skeleton nodded his head, but he refused to make eye contact with me. “Will you please tell me?” I begged him. He shook his head. I sat down next to him on the floor and gently shook his arm. “Please” I mouthed. Still, he turned his head; refusing to even look at me. I found myself getting frustrated. Papyrus and Undyne were trying so hard, but all he could do is avoid me.

“Do you hate me?” I finally asked him, clinging desperately to his sleeve. My eyes started to water. Why did I want to cry? I barely knew him, as far as I knew he was just some big dumb jerk. But I still wanted to cry. 

**“let me tell you a story I heard from a friend of mine kid.”** He offered instead, avoiding the question.

**“about two angels who were good friends. one day one of them turned into a powerful demon and the only one who could stop them was the other angel. she didn't know how it ended.”** He shifted and put one of his hands into his pockets and relaxed before continuing. **“do you know?”** I shook my head.

**“the angel stopped the demon. the demon was reborn, wavering somewhere between the lines. the angel wanted to kill his friend so that she would never have the chance to become another demon. But the other angel realized something. he could have stopped her from becoming a demon. but he wasn't there when she needed him most.”** His eyes slowly met mine. It was the first time he had managed to make eye contact.

“I think… that's very sad.” I mused softly. “If shes gone, who will stop the Angel if he turns into a demon?” I asked him. Sans grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him. He pressed my face against his chest and squeezed me tightly. “Sans?” I spoke, muffled against his clothes. He simply rubbed my back. I closed my eyes and took in the scent of his clothes. Sleep quckly overtook me.

I had another dream. It was snowing. I was walking down a snowy path, dark trees lined the path. I felt like somebody was watching me. A bridge in the distance with some makeshift structure on it. At the foot of the bridge, the footsteps of whatever was following started to grow louder and louder. Scared to turn around, the voice behind me spoke.

**“Human. Don't you know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake my hand.”**

Nervously I turned my body around and faced the mysterious figure. He was the first to extend his hand. Shyly I took his hand. _Pbbbbbbbbbbtttffffff._ A whoopee cushion.

**“heheh… the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick. it's ALWAYS funny. anyways, you're a human right? that's hilarious. i'm sans. sans the skeleton.”**

The memory of meeting Sans and Papyrus played in my dream. It was the most peaceful sleep I had since losing my memories. When I awoke next, I was on the couch with Sans jacket draped over me. The brothers were nowhere to be found. I slowly sat up and rubbed my eyes. With a soft yawn, I held my locket and opened it again. This must the true Sans and Papyrus. I felt frustrated with my own lack of memories. The sound of my phone broke the serene morning silence. 

“Hello.” I said, pressing the phone against my ear.

“Good you're awake human! Er- I mean, good morning best friend! Are you ready to regain your memories? Of course you are. I'll meet you there in two minutes.” Click. I didn't even manage to get a word in. Two minutes must stand for two seconds as Undyne opened the door shortly after hanging up.

“Yeesh, you look like a mess. Did you just wake up?” Undyne questioned. I am pretty sure I must look like a mess. My hair was all over the place.

“I'll help you get ready!” She volunteered, grabbing a hold of me. I was lifted into the air with ease and carried over to the bathroom. She turned the faucet for the hot water on all the way, tearing off the handle itself. Water spewed forth uncontrollably from the shower head. I found myself panicking as the water would quickly threaten to flood; the water flowing forth faster than it could drain. Undyne dumped me on the ground and grabbed a towel and wrapped it around the shower head. 

“There! Easy!” She grinned at me. Fighting against the blockade, water still trickled out from the towel. I scrambled to grab the broken handle and thrust it back on and turned the faucet all the way off. The bathroom quickly became a sauna with how hot the water was. 

“This water will boil me alive...” I observed. I dipped my finger in and pulled it right back out. 

“If you can withstand the heat of this water, it will strengthen your will and soul! If you wish to become powerful like me, you need to learn to withstand extreme temperatures, how to press on even when you feel like you can no longer keep going, the ability to push yourself so that you surpass your mortal limits!” Undyne lifted me above her head and dropped me into the boiling hot water. Clothes and all. I screamed and scrambled out of the bathtub.

The loud commotion attracted Papyrus whom rushed into the bathroom. When he saw the two of us he robotically turned around and left. He looked extremely embarrassed, as if he saw something he shouldn't have. 

“That was pathetic human! You didn't last for even a second!” Undyne protested. Draining the bathtub, she sighed heavily as she turned on something more humanely acceptable. Kicking the fish lady out, I quickly cleaned myself off. Insisting that it was what best friends did, she decided to comb my hair for me. I nearly lost a chunk of hair with how rough he would be. Papyrus sheepishly left his room to check on the two of us.

“EHEM! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAVE SOMETHING I MUST ANNOUNCE! I WAS NOT PEEKING! YOU TWO TRICKED ME! YOUR RUDIMENTARY WAYS OF TRYING TO SEDUCE ME WILL NOT WORK!” He declared, his cheekbones a cherry red. He refused to look either of us in the eye. Undyne threw my comb at his head.

“OW! IT IS TRUE WHAT THEY SAY! LOVE DOES HURT!” He ran away, retreating back to his room. Undyne seemed to almost die laughing. Catching her breath, Undyne grinned as she pulled out a pack.

“Time for make up!” She announced. I winced. There was no way she would be any good at that sort of thing.

“What's with that face? Now make sure to hold still.” Undyne insisted, taking out the foundation first. Undyne was very focused as she applied the make up. Her thumb would rub against my skin roughly when she was unhappy with her work, then she'd reapply it with a great fervor. When it was all said and done, she held up a mirror to my face.

If there was one word to describe it, it was very… bold. Light blue eye eye shadow, mascara, eye liner, light pink blush, pink lipsticks that made my lips stand out. But for somebody like me, it felt very unfitting. Sans walked through the door coming home from one of his various lunch breaks and glanced over at me. At first he tried to stifle his laughter, but it quickly turned into full blown laughter.

Undyne was obviously enraged that he would laugh at her work. “Shut up or I'll do you next!” She threatened. Sans snorted and shrugged his shoulders.

**“eh, i wouldn't stop you.”** He sat on the couch as if daring her to practice on him next. Undyne wasn't one to back down from a challenge. She made his make up even bolder, if possible. Very generous application of eye shadow, colorful application of blush, drawn on eye brows, and she even stuck on fake eye lashes to his face. Sans was the first to grab the mirror when she finished.

**“thanks! now i truly am the prettiest monster.”** He pretended to fluff and play with his hair before getting up and walking into Papyrus' room. A loud scream erupted from the room moments later. Papyrus came racing out pointing an accusing finger at Undyne.

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY BROTHER? HE IS VERY BEAUTIFUL NOW!” He then stomped the ground angrily. It was then that he noticed me and stared at me for a few moments. Then back to Undyne. Back to me, back to Undyne. Back to me, to Sans who is now standing outside his bedroom, then Undyne. Without another word he leaves the house. 

Undyne seemed to silently stew in anger, then threw the make up box. The various make up applications flew across the room and she grabbed my arm forcefully as she dragged me off. Taking the nearby ferry, she dragged me all the way to Alphys lab. The aforementioned Alphys looked extremely nervous when the two of us showed up at her door. The lizard made many sideways glances at me while she talked to Undyne. Making our way to the second floor of the lab, anime was already playing on the TV. There were five girls wearing pretty sailor outfits waving wands around. They spoke in a language I couldn't understand.

“S-so er uh- heh.. the human lost her memory?” She asked Undyne for confirmation. She nodded in reply and groaned aloud.

“I've tried everything. There's a few animes about people getting amnesia right?” She asked, nudging Alphys. Nervously Alphys started to poke at her fingers.

“M-maybe a few hundred… I guess.” She replied, laughing nervously.

“That's too many!” Undyne protested.

“M-maybe she should see a doctor.” Alyphys offered. Undyne paused and then shoved me toward the lizard woman.

“You're a doctor aren't you?” Undyne observed.

“N-not that kind of doctor! I mean, I'm a doctor but I'm a scientist n-not a doctor who heals people.” She protested, shaking her had furiously. 

“It's OK, really.” I finally spoke up. “Maybe it's better this way.” I mused softly. The two of them looked dejected by my response.

“When I met you human, you seemed dead set on leaving the underground. There is probably an important reason, and you forgot what it was.” Undyne argued. 

“That's why I think it might be better this way.” I answered, rubbing my arm shyly. “I might have to leave all my friends behind if I leave.” 

“Coward.” Undyne spat. She looked really upset. With a deep breath she turned her back to me and left the lab. Alphys chased after her until the lab door separated the two. With resignation the scientist walked back upstairs and sat down on the couch upstairs with me.

“Undyne really doesn't like cowards… does she?” She sheepishly asked me, her eyes downcast as she stared at her own feet which kicked at the air randomly.

“She's a very strong individual. I don't mean that just physically either. But not everybody can be as strong as she is.” I replied, patting her shoulder.

“She's so cool, confident, and strong. The complete opposite of me. I am literal weeb trash.” She exhaled heavily and hung her head.

“At the very least, I don't think she sees you that way. And if that wasn't the case, she accepts and likes you for who you are.” I assured her. Not that there was any way I would know. Half of the time all I could see her as was a bully. But deep down, I knew she was a good person.

“Y-your right. Thanks.” Alphys blushed and had the tiniest of smiles on her face. “Oh! Speaking of which, I know a really awesome otome game where the heroine has amnesia and in reality shes a super deadly human weapon and threatens all of humanity and she goes on a search about who she is and who her father is! Wanna play it?!” She asked me, leaping onto her feet to grab it without waiting for my answer.

We spent the evening playing said otome game together. Well, mostly I watched her play and read the text. It was fun watching her reactions. The face she'd get angry, blush, get disgusted, or happy depending on what was happening in the game. She'd ask me some odd questions about what I thought of certain characters and ask me which choice she should make. When it time to come home I left the lab and then came up to the crossroads. I looked each way, but found myself awfully confused. Which way was home? I went North. I came across a large elevator. I was very sure I didn't take an elevator. I turned around to go back home but I went face first into an armored figure standing above me. I looked up and saw two imposing knights behind me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  Said otome game is essentially the plot of Code:Realize.  
> 


	10. Longing

“Like, be careful dude! I've heard that there's like this dangerous human wandering about. You should get home soon.” He warned me. His silent partner watched me without saying a word. As they stepped around me, the one whom spoke to me turned around.

“Wait… striped shirt?” He observed, scratching his head. “Oh! So like, this is totally embarrassing but you're the human aren't ya?” He asked me.

“I uh...” I sheepishly took a few steps back. Only to crash yet into another person. I turned my head, to see Sans behind me. He put an arm around my shoulders. He still had that ridiculous make up on.

**“there you are! i've been looking all over for you. heh. you're gonna be late for our routine.”** Sans said aloud, pulling me away from the guards. The one with the rabbit ears chased after us.

“Yo bro..er sis? I think that's the human! I've like, gotta take her in and stuff.”

**“she does make a pretty convincing human doesn't she? hilarious. tell you what, give us a location and type of relationship.”** Sans slyly winked at me as he tried to smooth talk our way from the guards.

“Oh! Bro, check it out! It's an improv group!” The knight called over his partner whom silently walked over. “Oh! I know, How about a Nice Cream Stand and you're exes after a nasty break up!” 

**“nice cream stand and exes.”** He rubbed his bony chin for a moment and pulled away from me. **“heh. don't you know this is a nice cream stand, not a lie scream stand.”** I started to panic as I tried to come up with a funny response.

“I uh well! At least the ice cream knows how to say nice things about me to its friends!” I visibly winced, expecting the two guards to hate it.

**“ouch, you're as cold as ice.”** He smiled smugly, happy to get his one pun in.

“Wow dudes, that was like terrible. But nobody would leave the house looking like that if they weren't in comedy. Have a good show you two.” The guard waved a farewell to the two of us and the two of them took the elevator up. I sighed with relief once they had left.

**“well that wasn't very nice. i think at the very least your face looks acceptable.”** Sans sighed heavily.

“Why haven't you taken that make up off yet?” I asked him in disbelief.

**“i tried. but when i tried to wash it with water it got smudged and i got lazy.”** He shrugged his shoulders. That would explain why he looked like a clown. Well, a bigger clown.

With Sans to lead me the way, he took me to the ferry and we were well on our way back home to Snowdin. The whole time I couldn't stop staring at the terrible job of him attempting to take off his make up.

**“i do look beautiful don't i?”** He asked me, posing for me a little. **“i'd fall in love with me.”** I started to laugh. Shaking my head at how ridiculous he acted. Now pretending to comb his imaginary hair. “ **been a while since i've heard you laugh.”** I stopped laughing and found myself conscious of myself. 

“I didn't think your face got any more ridiculous than the one in my locket.” I retorted, opening it and showing it to him to give an example.

**“now that's no fair. i could look far more ridiculous if i wanted.”** He insisted, making sideways glances.

“I suppose that's true. Shame that Papyrus got all the good looks huh?” I teased him. I pulled out a cloth in my pocket and soaked it in the river water a bit before wiping off the rest of the make up on his face. I got the more stubborn parts of it off by licking my thumb and rubbing it. Sans face was a light blue the whole time. When I had finished, I tucked the cloth back in my pocket.

**“tell me about it! but that's why you're my best friend. you make me look good.”** He made a sly smirk. I pouted and punched his shoulder. The sudden movement rocked the ferry and I wound up falling on top of the skeleton. Staring down at the older brother, my face instantly flushed.

**“falling for me? i have to say frisk, i am flattered but i wouldn't want to rock the boat.”** He teased, his cheeks turning a light blue as he avoided eye contact. I huffed indignantly and shifted my weight to sit back up but the boat started to rock even more. The skeleton underneath me reached his hand out and gently touched my cheek. My body instantly froze up.

**“i wish you would never regain your memories.”** He whispered, looking lonely as he said so. My breath caught in my throat.

“Everyone is trying so hard to help me regain my memories. Why is it that you don't want me to remember?” I asked him. He was stuck here with me, at least until we made it to Snowdin. He couldn't escape me this time. Despite that, he simply stared at me in silence, refusing to answer. 

“Sans, can I trust you?” I asked him, my lips quivering as I asked.

**“i don't know.”** He replied, shrugging his shoulders. I sighed at this wishy washy answer. “more than anybody, i know that nothing good will come from you recovering your memories.” He answered. 

“When you say it like that, it makes it sound like I forgot everything for a good reason.” I observed.

**“not exactly. you're just an airhead.”** He teasingly winked at me. I huffed and flicked his forehead with my finger. He laughed and slowly lifted up his torso. With some careful maneuvering I manged to sit upright myself. We stopped the ferry on the outskirts of town.

“If you think that I'd be happier not having my memories, I'll trust in your judgment Sans. I do wish I could remember you from before though...” I mused sadly. “The memories I have of you now; you're very distant. But the you today seems like the true you.”

**“don't worry. it's mostly bad jokes. oh, but there was this one time that you told me that i was the funniest, most handsome monster in all the underground.”** He recalled, patting my shoulder with a look of pity on his face.

“I thought that was Mettaton.” I retorted with a look of curiosity.

**“shhhhh. its ok frisk.”** He shushed me, patting my head gently. I pouted.

“You are a big jerk! You tease me and make fun of my face, then you avoid all my questions with jokes.” I puffed out my cheeks. Sans poked either cheeks with his pointer fingers making me sputter air out of my lips. I continued to pout.

**“you're really cute when you pout like that.”** He laughed, now poking my nose. Embarrassed, I pulled away and turned my back to him.

“Bonehead!” I yelled, folding my arms across my chest.

**“I'll protect you, no matter what Frisk.”** He spoke gently. I whipped my head around, only to find that he was already gone. I had never felt so alone. 

Papyrus was already asleep on the couch, probably waiting to see when I'd get home. Papyrus sucked on his thumb as he slept; a teddy bear tucked in his arm. Pulling his blanket up, Papyrus mumbled in his sleep and grabbed a hold of my hand. I leaned closer so that I could make sense of what he was saying.

“I BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU CAN DO A LITTLE BETTER! EVEN IF YOU DON'T THINK SO! I...PROMISE...” He mumbled in his sleep, groaning softly as he pulled his hand away and rolled over so that his back faced me. I felt something in my guts, something that made me want to throw up. Putting my arms around my stomach, I got down on my knees. It got worse and I ended up covering my mouth with my hands as I almost vomited. 

A vision flashed in my head. I was standing out in a snowstorm from an area that looked like the outskirts of Snowdin. It was hard to see Papyrus in the middle of the storm. With the exception of his red scarf billowing in the wind. Like a lighthouse it guided me toward him. In my hand I held a knife, held tightly in a fist. I had a hard time focusing on the words. I saw his mouth move, but all I heard was white noise. Even as the snow whipped against my face, my face felt hot despite how cold it must have been. In a gesture of friendliness he held his arms out. I ran my knife straight through him. His head rolled off his shoulders and his body crumbled to dust. He spoke those words in his last moments.

“I BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU CAN DO A LITTLE BETTER! EVEN IF YOU DON'T THINK SO! I...PROMISE...” Then his skull turned to dust and flew off by the wind created by the windstorm circling around us. I saw my reflection briefly in the knife. I was smiling. A huge smile, even as tears streamed down my face.

When I came back to reality, my vision was gone. All I could see was pure black. A loud ringing in my head prevented me to hear anything. I screamed and pulled at my hair. The pain reminded me that at the very least one of my senses was still there. As my vision slowly returned, I saw a blurry white figure and a blur of red around what I assumed was his neck. Papyrus. The ringing prevented me from making sense of anything he said. I felt pressure around my shoulders as Papyrus grabbed my shoulders and shook me.

“HUMAN! WHAT IS WRONG HUMAN?!” He asked me in a panicked sweat. I started to take deep breaths as I reached out and touched his face. He was alive. Definitely alive. I wrapped my arms around the skeletons neck and hugged him tightly. Dumbfounded, he awkwardly froze up and watched me. 

“W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING? W-W-WAS THIS JUST A TRICK TO HUG ME?” He questioned me, beet red.

“I-is it possible to have a nightmare while you're awake?” I asked him, holding to him even more tightly as if he'd disappear the moment I let him go.

“A NIGHTMARE? C-CALM DOWN HUMAN. TELL ME ABOUT THIS NIGHTMARE.” He gently patted my head and gave me a warm smile. It was a pure and gentle smile.

“There was a snowstorm and you were there. I walked up to you, holding a knife in my hand. You were saying something to me but I couldn't make out what. I stabbed you with the knife and even as...” I bit my lip, which were now trembling. “As you turned to dust you… you said you believed in me.” My eyes watered as I recalled the nightmare. Papyrus listened to me patiently and started to laugh.

“NYEH HEH HEH! SILLY HUMAN! DO NOT WORRY, EVEN IF YOU DID TRY TO KILL ME I AM SIMPLY TOO POWERFUL! AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT! THAT NIGHTMARE SIMPLY COULD NEVER HAPPEN SO DO NOT FEAR!!!” He declared, posing in a grand fashion. I couldn't help but laugh a little.

“You're right. Besides, you're standing right here so it must have been just a dream.” I insisted. Speaking more so to myself than Papyrus. The vision had been so vivid though, it disturbed me.

“THIS IS THE SECOND NIGHTMARE YOU HAVE HAD HUMAN. THERE WAS THE ONE YOU HAD WHEN SANS KILLED YOU. ARE YOU HAVING TROUBLE SLEEPING?” His voice was full of concern. 

“I- yes.” I admitted, sighing heavily. Papyrus handed me the teddy bear he was sleeping with.

“SIR BEARINGTON FIGHTS OFF THE BAD DREAMS! HE WILL PROTECT YOU.” He explained, chuckling happily. I held up the teddy bear. It's fur was short, parts of it had fallen off and you could see the sewing underneath. One eye had gone missing, one of the ears also looked as if it had been chewed on. Sir Bearington had clearly seen a lot of use.

“He's perfect. Thank you Papyrus.” I answered with a smile as I hugged the teddy bear. Papyrus blushed.

“NYEH HEH HEH! I AM NOT AFRAID OF SCARY DREAMS ANYMORE! I WAS JUST KEEPING SIR BEARINGTON COMPANY. SANS PASSED HIM ON TO ME, AND I WILL PASS HIM ON TO YOU!” He declared, knighting my shoulder with a bone. I didn't realize receiving a teddy bear required such ceremony. I slept peacefully that night as well.


	11. Wish

The next day, We went back to the same shenanigans of trying to regain my memories. Even Sans tagged along. Not much, if anything came back to me since the nightmare about Papyrus.

“HUMAN, I AM GOING TO UNDYNE'S FOR COOKING LESSONS. WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN ME?” Papyrus invited me, insisting that the more the merrier. The thought of cooking with Undyne was a bit scary, but I agreed nonetheless. It turned out that the two of them were even more hilarious than they were individually.

“The human's here! Did you want to hang out with Papyrus?” She asked, not noticing the skeleton behind me.

“REALLY? CAN WE!!!” He exclaimed, his eyes starry in his excitement. Noticing the younger brother, Undyne just got more hyped.

“YEAH! WE'LL COOK SO MUCH SPAGHETTI IT'LL COME OUT OF YOUR EYES!” Undyne exclaimed.

“COOL! SPAGHETTI AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE!”

I found myself snickering under my breath. Thus cooking lessons with Undyne begun. She was very...passionate about her lessons at that. Our first pot of spaghetti ended up a burning charred mess. Undyne ended up tossing the pot and all outside.

“Welp! That was a fantastic catastrophe!” Undyne announced.

“THANK YOU!”

“I wasn't praising you!”

“WHAT? DO I GET MY SPAGHETTI VISION NOW?” Complying with Papyrus' wishes, Undyne stuck dry spaghetti right into Papyrus' eye sockets.

“SPAGHETTI VISION IS SUSPICIOUSLY BLACK!”

Our day passed by with many laughs. In the end, nothing edible was made. We had pizza delivered to Undyne's house. Sitting around Undyne's table, we started to gossip. Papyrus taking the lead.

“I SAW YOU ON TV WITH METTATON THE OTHER DAY HUMAN!”

“Psh, what's so great about that guy?” Undyne added in.

“HE IS MY FAVORITE SEXY RECTANGLE! I EVEN PUT LIMES IN MY EYES SO I CAN HAVE SEXY BISHOUNEN EYES JUST LIKE HIM!...SIGH.” He sighed happily, thinking of his favorite television star. (But Mettaton doesn't have eyes???)

“I don't...really remember meeting Mettaton, I'm sorry.” I replied, laughing nervously.

“Hah! That must be how insignificant the event was to you.” Undyne interjected, smiling smugly as she looked at Papyrus.

“YOU ARE VERY SIGNIFICANT TO ME UNDYNE!” He exclaimed happily. Undyne blushed.

“Aww, you are significant to me too.” She replied.

“DO NOT WORRY HUMAN! WE CAN HAVE OUR OWN TV SHOW! THEN WE CAN BE OUR OWN STARS!”

“AWSOME! I hear TV stars get all the girls!” Undyne smirked, her face turning a bright red as she thought about it.

“I CAN BECOME POPULAR! NYEH HEH HEH!”

“I'll get to write cheesy romantic screenplays!” I added in, my face turning a bright red as I thought about it. The other two seemed disappointed in my answer.

“Romance?! There should be AWESOME action scenes with spears and swords and muscles and fist bumps!” Undyne suggested.

“I WANT TO BE A BISHOUNEN!” Papyrus added in.

“Why not all three?” I wondered.

“Yuck! I don't want any of the sappy sentimental crap.” Undyne argued. In the end, it really didn't matter. The dream of becoming TV stars was simply fun fantasy talk. As the night wore on, the talks became a bit more personal.

“ARE YOU GOING TO CONFESS TO ALPHYS, UNDYNE?” Papyrus asked her. The fish lady punched him in the face.

“SHUT UP!” She quickly turned to look at me and glared me. As if daring me to ask about it.

“OUCH! LOVE HURTS!” Papyrus protested.

“How about you tell us about your crush.” Undyne volunteered the skeleton. His face instantly turn a deep red as he obviously thought about somebody.

“METTATON!” He announced, unabashed. Undyne sighed. Then looked at me.

“THE HUMAN IS MADLY IN LOVE WITH ME! YOU CAN TELL BY THE WAY SHE GETS SHY WHENEVER YOU BRING IT UP!” He answered Undyne before she could even ask me. She still looked at me for confirmation.

“I don't remember.” I answered her, my face flushed a bright red. Undyne sighed heavily. 

“You two are no fun. Fine! SO WHAT IF I LIKE ALPHYS?! At least I have the GUTS to admit it!” Undyne proudly announced. Papyrus applauded her. 

“Why haven't you confessed to her yet?” I asked her. Undyne nervously refused to make eye contact with me.

“I-I tried, but I'm not good at that writing love letter crap!” She admitted. Papyrus and I immediately volunteered to assist her in writing the letter. At first she was completely against it, but against her better judgment we started to write a letter. We only stuck around for a couple lines before Undyne ended up kicking the two of us out from sheer embarrassment. 

“I WISH I COULD RECEIVE A LOVE LETTER!” Papyrus commented. “THEY MAKE THE PERFECT COUPLE.” I nodded my head in agreement. We got home late that night. Papyrus escorted me home and left, apparently busy with something. I went home alone and slept on the couch again.

Surprisingly, the one I spent the day with next was Sans himself. Early in the morning he dragged me off to Grillbys for breakfast. We had burgers and he introduced me to the regulars there. The dogs were suspicious of me, but quickly took to me when I pet them. They got very excited after that. I won some easy points with the regulars that way.

 **“you look quite fetching for a change.”** Sans commented, smiling to himself as he took a bite out of his burger.

“And you look like a mangy mutt I found in an alley way.” I retorted.

**“no need to have that stick up your butt.”**

“You're barking up the wrong tree mister.”

**“heh. you're hilarious.” He conceded defeat, for now.**

Everyone at Grillbys seemed quite taken to the skeleton. When it came time for us to leave, they all said farewell. Once we left the establishment Sans took a hold of my hand.

“Come with me, I know a shortcut.” Before I had a chance to protest, I was whisked away. He took me to a dark cavernous room where it gave the illusion of stars. I gasped aloud as I looked above, looking at the beautiful sight above me. Not too far away, I saw a telescope. Still holding his hand, I rushed over and leaned over to look into the telescope. There was some writing on the lens, but I couldn't look at the stars with it. I was disappointed.

**“i heard that in the outside world, the stars change year round. there are constellations, falling stars, meteor showers, and supposedly this one really big star called the moon.” Sans explained, then pointed up at the ceiling. “the stars here stay the same. but it's still a popular spot for monsters to visit, in fact a lot of monsters come here to make wishes.”**

“Wishes? Do you have a wish Sans?” I asked him.

**“i do.”**

“What is it?”

**“it's a secret.”**

“I have a wish.”

 **“even if you wish for a better looking face, i don't think it'll happen.”** He teased me. I went silent. Sans sighed and rubbed the back of his head. **“what is your wish?”**

“It's a secret.” I replied, pouting. Sans chuckled.

“Papyrus told me about your nightmare the other day.” He changed the subject all of a sudden. I silently stared at my feet. “it worries you.” I nodded in reply.

 **“are you happy, frisk? do you want to regain your memories if that means you'll lose that happiness?”** He asked me.

“I-I don't know.” I answered, biting my lip. “But I think I will recover them eventually. I remember meeting you and Papyrus, Sans. I also have some memories that I can't make sense of yet, but eventually the puzzles will fall into place. I think the real question is if I should remember sooner rather than later.”

**“What if there was a way to forget everything forever?”**

“Then I'd be running away.” I answered. Sans was silent after that. Coughing nervously he broke the silence.

**“why did the skeleton throw his hip away?”**

“Why did the skeleton throw his hip away?”

 **“it was a waist.”** He watched me, a hopeful smirk on his face. I shook my head as I snickered under my breath. 

“You're the worst!” I shoved his shoulder gently.

 **“wurst? i'm all bones!”** Siiiiiiiigh.

“A real bonehead!” I insisted.

He showed me the echo flowers. I listened to the wishes of many monsters who visited. The clearest one was two monsters talking about wanting to see the outside world. Without my memories, I wanted to see the outside world too. I quietly spoke my wish to one of the flowers, soft enough that Sans couldn't hear me. While he was looking the other way, a yellow flower popped out hiding amongst the echo flowers. A malicious and evil smile plastered on his face.

“Heh. Heh. Heh. I bet if you killed Papyrus right now, you'd utterly break him! What an idiot, trusting you again! You should do it! It'll be so much fun!” The flower whispered to me, shaking violently as he imagined it all in his head. It was disturbing how much he seemed to be enjoying himself.

“Do you know who I am?” I whispered back to the flower.

“I'm your friend, Flowey the flower!” He answered, winking at me as he gave me a disturbingly innocent smile.

“What do you mean by me killing Papyrus?” I asked the flower, only to be interrupted by Sans foot as he stepped on the flower. The ground itself seemed to swallow Flowey and he disappeared. I bit my lip and looked up at the older brother.

 **“heh. i thought i heard a death wish.”** His eyes went completely black as he spoke. **“hey kid, you hungry? you must be sick of grillbys. i know a place, we can take the shortcut.”**

“Who was that Sans?” I asked.

 **“who? we're alone.”** He held a hand out to me. I knew if I pressed the issue, he would dance around the question. I sighed soft and took his hand. Using his shortcut, we were taken to the restaurant at the MTT Hotel. It was a very atmospheric place. There was some ambient lighting, and a single candle on the table illuminated and danced upon the features of Sans face. His eyes were back to normal now, a gentle expression on his face.

“This place is very nice. It doesn't seem to suit you.”

 **“is that how you see me? you know just how to cut right through me.”** He had a very strange smile on his face. It looked very pained.

“Y-you misunderstand me. I like how quiet and ambient it is here, but the rowdy and fun atmosphere of Grillby's suits you so much better.” I had hoped that my answer would clear up the misunderstanding but instead he looked really lonely.

**“hey, frisk. why couldn't the skeleton confess his feelings?”**

“I don't know, why?”

 **“he didn't have the guts.”** He chuckled softly.

“That's not very funny.” I whispered to myself.

 **“its hilarious!” He admitted, making a sideways glance. “cause we skeletons don't have any guts but well, its never funny if you have to explain the joke.”** Silence. Our meals were brought to the table, a welcome repose to the silence. Saying my thanks, the waiter left. I stared at the meal on the table. A piano started to play. It was a very familiar song. I shoved my plate forward and pressed my skull against the table as another memory started to surface. I fought back my scream, drool escaping my lips as I found myself unable to control myself.

**"i asked her what was up. then she told me something strange. 'if a human ever comes through this door... ...could you please, please promise something? watch over them, and protect them, will you not? now, i hate making promises. and this woman, i don't even know her name. but... someone who sincerely likes bad jokes... has an integrity you can't say 'no' to."**

Sans and I had been here before. He spoke of another woman who asked him to watch over me. It made sense now, the way he always seem to be around whenever I was in danger. Whoever she was, must be very important to him. The familiar ringing in my ear played in my head, getting louder and louder until it suddenly stopped. Sans was calling my name. His hand was on my shoulder, shaking me gently. 

“I'm OK Sans.” I assured him, rubbing my forehead as I sat back up. “I regained another memory. We've been here before haven't we?” I asked him. He was dumbfounded but nodded his head to answer my question. He silently sat back down. We silently poked at our food. More awkward silence. We left the restaurant, barely touching our food. Instead of taking a shortcut, we walked home together in silence. We took the ferry to Snowdin. But when we got to the crossroads, Sans insisted on showing me something before we home for the night. 

We made our way toward the ruins. Flashes of images of the memories I made here came to mind. Eventually we came across a bridge with a weird makeshift bars on it. Easily slipping past them, Sans stopped at the foot of the bridge. 

“This is where we met, isn't it?” I asked.

 **“that's right. you've regained that much as well.”** He sighed heavily and looked up at the sky. It was snowing again.

“What is it that you wanted to show me?” I asked as he walked up behind him.

 **“I'm sorry kid.”** He sighed heavily slowly turned around. He pulled his hands out of his pocket; lifting his left hand. My body was lifted into the air as my heart turned blue. He then threw me against a tree and stood over me as two Gaster Blasters hovered above either shoulder. The skeleton lifted his right arm now as he kept a tight hold on my heart with his left one. With one finger extended, he held it.

“W-why Sans?” I winced, gripping at my shirt as it felt like he was directly squeezing my heart. With one open eye, I watched him. “Why would you protect me, only to kill me like this? I don't… understand.”

 **“The fact you don't understand is exactly the reason why!”** He yelled for the very first time since I've met him. He gritted his teeth, his right eye burning bright.

“I want to understand though.” I protested, watching his finger as it started to waver. The Gaster Blasters waited patiently waiting for his signal. His shoulders dropped.

 **“You'll be happier this way Frisk, trust me...”** His voice dropped. 

“Will you?” I struggled to answer. He started to move his right hand but stopped. Hesitating. “You always look so lonely whenever you look at me. Like you always have something you want to tell me, but then you end up making a joke instead to distract me.” He slowly lowered his right hand so that the Gaster Blasters dispersed and walked over to me. He released his hold on my heart and dropped down to his knees in front of me as I laid against the tree for support.

 **“If you remember who you are, will you be the Frisk who was my best friend or the one whom betrayed me?”** He sounded defeated as he hung his head. His expression was unreadable.

“I'm a very lucky person.” I smiled at him and started to laugh softly under my breath. His head snapped up in surprise to my reaction. “If I am truly somebody who would betray my best friend, I certainly don't deserve for him to worry about my happiness, protect me, and I certainly don't deserve… to be close to you.” I closed my eyes and exhaled softly. Silently Sans leaned over until his forehead rested on my shoulder. 

Gently, I laid my hand on the back of his skull and gently stroked it. It was smooth, cold from the snow, and slightly wet. I stared up at the sky, watching the snow fall. With a deep breath, I decided on my answer.

“I don't want to die. Everyone here is very precious to me. I don't know what kind of person I was in the past. I may have done something unforgivable, if that is the case I'll do everything in my power to repent for those deeds until I am forgiven. To start with, I don't want to be the reason you look so alone anymore Sans. I want to understand you.”

 **“I would be truly alone if you were gone.”** He embraced me. In my shock, I slowly wrapped my arms around him and gently squeezed him back. I don't know how much time had passed before he pulled away from me. He gently assisted me back onto my feet. The sudden cold air hit me. Noticing my shivering, Sans pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. I paused as I felt the familiar weight of the jacket.

“It's a bone chilling night isn't it? It blows right through you.” I spoke the words slowly. Sans smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

 **“i wouldn't want you to catch a femur.”** His cheeks flushed a light blue. With a soft chuckle he patted my back.


	12. Tryst

Peaceful days returned. Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, Undyne, and myself all became close friends. Undyne finally managed to confess to Alphys, and the two of them begun dating. Papyrus insisted on being the Maid of Honor in their future wedding. Things then slowly started to settle down to a normal life. I begun working as well as a librarby assistant. I read stories to the children, reorganized the books, and took care of the desk when the owner wasn't there. My memories returned to me in shorter and shorter lapses. 

“I keep getting memories that don't make any sense. Of events that couldn't have happened, or those that couldn't have happened yet. I was wondering, if you could help me make sense of it all.” I asked Sans one evening. We were visiting the Echo flowers again as per my request. I had asked him many questions involving the situation of my memories. Each time, he'd tell a joke trying to avoid the conversation.

**“They're all true.”** He answered me simply. I stared at him in shock, I wasn't expecting a straightforward answer.

“But what about Papyrus being killed by my hands?” My heart beat started to beat wildly. Of all my fears, it was the realization that it was real that scared me more than anything.

**“That happened on the previous time line.”** He looked away, stopping in his tracks. He watched the water instead.

“Why would I do that?” He grabbed a hold of his arm, trying to get him to look me in the eye.

**“I… I failed to be there for you. You killed in what could easily be justified as self defense. I blamed you for not using your powers to avoid doing so. Instead of trying to stop you, I gave up. I gave up on trying, I sat by, and it became easier to simply hate you.”** He pulled his arm away from my hand, turning his back to me. I wrapped my arms around his waist and gently pressed my head against his back. 

“I'm sorry. You've been blaming yourself all this time haven't you? You did what any normal person would. I killed innocents, that's unforgivable. So please, don't blame yourself. Rather...” My hands grabbed onto his clothes. I started to squeeze them as I trembled. “Thank you.” Sans gently laid a hand on top of one of mine and squeezed it gently until I loosened my grip on his jacket. Slowly our fingers intertwined.

**“I wish I could see the outside world with you.”**

“Hm?”

**“You once asked me what my wish was.”** The realization hit me and I mouthed an O. I blushed and buried my face into the back of his jacket.

“Funny, I wished for the same thing.” Sans started to laugh at my confession. “What's so funny?!”

**“hehheh. sorry. it's just, at one point i stopped caring about seeing the outside world. throughout the many resets, i gave up ever leaving here.”** He admitted, sighing heavily.

“And I forget my memories every time?” 

**“Not exactly. It just becomes harder for you to remember. I strongly believe this will be the last time you'll be able to remember. As for what happens after, I'm not sure.”** He explained. I wondered if he had to explain this all to me before. 

“Thank you Sans.” I pulled away from him. He slowly turned around to face me and gently ruffled my hair.


	13. Freedom

The missing pages soon came together. Able make sense of the memories, they came rushing back to me. Spending time with all my friends would often inspire a flashback. Sans would speak of some of the memories that were lost in previous time lines. It was a late evening, watching TV with the two brothers when I obtained the last memory. Papyrus was asleep on the couch and Sans on the floor. Mettaton was playing in the background on the TV. I silently left the house. I made my way to the ferry.

“ARE YOU LEAVING AGAIN HUMAN?” I heard Papyrus' voice behind me. I turned to face him, surprised that he had actually seen me leave. I bit my lip, feeling awfully guilty for leaving like that without a word. I nodded my head in reply.

“YOU LEFT ONCE BEFORE. YOU CLAIMED THAT YOU WOULD FREE ALL OF US AND TAKE US TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD. BUT THEN SANS BROUGHT YOU BACK HERE ONE DAY AND YOU HAD FORGOTTEN EVERYTHING.” He spoke solemnly. He walked up to me and unraveled the cape around his neck. He wrapped it around my neck and then fixed it up so that it covered my entire neck like a makeshift scarf. I watched his hands and gently touched the fabric like it was a priceless treasure.

“IT IS COLD OUT THERE HUMAN! I WILL NOT FORGIVE YOU IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO YOU AGAIN! MAKE SURE YOU COME HOME.” He looked like he was on the verge of tears. Saying his final piece, Papyrus left. I watched as his figure disappeared into the distance and gently touched the scarf again. I could smell the faint scent of Bone Cologne. I pulled the scarf up so that it covered my nose. I smiled and left.

Back to the Hotlands, I took the elevator once more. I was silent as I was carried toward the core. When I had gotten off the elevator, I found myself in front of a large hotel. I walked inside, the first thing that I noticed was a large statue of a robot. Monsters walked to and from, busy with their lives. I pressed on to the back, finding myself at the core. The inside of the core was surprisingly technologically advanced. Thankfully a lot of the machines were powered off so it was pretty easy to make my way inside. I found the elevator and took it to the castle.

I found myself in a nostalgic place. I walked through a courtyard and a house, the monsters whom were there called out to speak to me. Telling me the story of the king and queen, the human children, and how the king and queen lost both children in one tragic day. I roamed the house. It was an exact replica of Toriel's home. I recalled the days I had spent in her care and smiled wistfully. I pressed on.

“Finally got bored?” A voice called out to me. When I turned around, I saw a flower. He was smiling at me in a friendly fashion.

“Flowey… I've decided that this will be the last time. I'm going to reach the end, and set everybody free.” I spoke my determination. Flowey's mood quickly soured.

“I was really hoping you were going to kill everybody in the end. Heh. Hehehehe. I bet those idiots wouldn't even TRY to fight back! The faces they'd make as you'd kill them. Delightful~” A perverted expression as he danced. My stomach dropped.

“I'll save you Flowey. I'm sorry that it took this long.” I then walked away. He called out to me, but I ignored his words. I eventually made my way to that all too familiar church.

It was absolutely silent. Golden light filtered in from the windows, however the long columns cast long shadows that made the atmosphere dark. My footsteps echoed off the vaulted ceiling, it made me feel lonely. In the distance I saw a shadow. It was a very familiar shape. Sans. He stood there waiting for me as I approached him.

 **“Did you regain your memories?”** He asked.

“I did. All of them.” I answered.

 **“So this is what you decided on when you regained them.”** He sighed heavily and shook his head. **“You know what will happen if you try resetting again Frisk.”**

“No more resets. I will atone for the sins I've committed.” I closed my eyes and touched the scarf that Papyrus gave me. The locket that Sans gave me was hidden underneath the cloth. “For the sake of everybody, I will grant their wish.” Sans footsteps echoed as he approached me. Until he was standing directly in front of me.

 **“Take me with you, for laughs, for luck, for the unknown. Take me with you.”** He smiled. I stared at him in disbelief. **“That's a line from one of your favorite books in the outside world isn't it?”** I nodded.

“I am a little afraid to go home. I have been immortal, and some part of me is immortal yet. I'm no longer like the others.” It wasn't an exact quoting, but the feeling was still the same.

 **“heh. you're a dweeb. i'll see you on the other side.”** He walked past me. I listened to the sound of his echoing footsteps as he left. When I could no longer hear the footsteps I carried on.

My next stop was finally meeting Asgore. The king himself was watering some buttercups. He must love his garden dearly. I've seen this ending before. In this long maze, this was the one true path that led to freedom for everyone. Freedom for Toriel. For Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, everyone. But not only that, but for the one whom needed saving the most. Asriel. With a resolute heart, I approached the king and begun my battle with Asriel. When I awoke from the battle, I was surrounded by everyone. 

It was obvious everyone was eager to leave, but they insisted that they would wait for me say my goodbyes if I wanted to before leaving. I already had made my farewells. Rejecting their offer, there was relief in their voices as they walked together to see the outside world. Taking in the sight of the sun for the first time, they gasped in admiration. A beautiful sunset. Slowly everyone said their farewells. Until it was only Papyrus, Sans, and myself who remained with me by that cliff side. 

“HUMAN, I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT!” He smiled at me with absolute glee. I returned his smile. His cape which hung around my neck like a scarf billowed in the wind.

“It's been a long journey. But now the true one finally begins.” I said, smiling wistfully as I stared out the cliff side. I've seen this sunset so many times, but this time it was more beautiful than ever. I felt tired, but also rejuvenated. 

**“so where should we go first?”** Sans asked the three of us.

“I'll go anywhere.” I answered.

**“hm, I think I want to see the real stars. and the beach. what about you paps?”**

“I WANT TO DRIVE DOWN A HIGHWAY IN A SUPER COOL CONVERTIBLE!”

From that day on, time started to move forward for Sans and myself. Every experience was new. We napped in the warmth of the sun, felt the sand of a beach between our toes, the wind as we drove in a convertible, and learned all about the constellations together. Although we never did tell Papyrus what happened, I served as the brothers guide to the outside world. I never did reset again. And I never stopped carrying the burden of those sins. I became an ambassador for the monsters, fostering peace among the races.

It was hard at first, but over time peoples hearts were swayed by the kind nature of the monsters. Able to live out their dreams without fear of being killed, the monsters managed to live happy lives in the world above. Sans and Papyrus easily won the hearts of peoples. Sans with his goofy jokes and relaxed nature and Papyrus' pure heart convinced the humans that they were not inherently evil. The three of us managed to live long lives. I wrote these memoirs so that I would never forget my sins or the memories of the monsters I had accumulated over the many time lines. 

The end. For real this time.

**p.s. i'm a dweebasaurus rex**

P.S.S. Sans is a massive dork.

P.S.S.S MY NAME IS SANS AND I WISH I WAS ULTRA COOL LIKE PAPYRUS

P.S.S.S.S You're both boneheads! GET OUT OF MY MEMOIRS! Also Sans, please pick up your socks. Mt. Sockmore isn't funny anymore.

**you're right. the eiffel sock tower is hilarious though.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading! This is the first time writing a fanfic in over 10 years! I had a lot of fun writing and re-writing this story so I hoped you all enjoyed reading it!


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